Broadcast 13th June

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13 June 2014

INTERVIEW

BEHIND THE SCENES

ANALYSIS

Page 26

Page 32

Page 5

Melvyn Bragg on faith, DIY rig: how to arts and his TV legacy film a flying cat

Sheffield DocFest: the talking points

C4 orders real-time voting show Endemol’s The Singer Takes It All will launch in August ahead of ITV’s format Rising Star

BY MATTHEW CAMPELLI

Channel 4 is planning to steal a march on ITV by launching an interactive singing contest that hands viewers real-time voting power.

The broadcaster has turned to Endemol UK in its quest for a breakout entertainment hit, commissioning live talent format The Singer Takes It All for transmission in August.

Fronted by Alan Carr (below), the 4 x 60-minute series features a moving 18-metre stage that can be manipulated by viewers depending on how they rate the act performing.

Viewers will be prompted to vote four times during each performance, using a free app.

If the act is a crowd-pleaser, the stage moves the singer forward to a ‘gold zone’ at the front. But if the singer hits a bum note with the audience, they will be sent to the back – and potentially out of the show.

Contestants who spend the most time in the gold zone will compete for an undisclosed cash prize in each of the four episodes. The format has no judges, although a selection of celebrity guests will interact with the acts.

The show’s August debut means C4 will have a head start on ITV, which will launch its version of Israeli interactive talent format Rising Star early next year.

C4 head of entertainment Justin Gorman said The Singer Takes It All had been in development since 2013 and will have a different tone to talent shows on rival broadcasters.

The show is “about being in the moment, not about record-

The Million Pound Drop Live: interactive Davina McCall-hosted series provided inspiration for The Singer Takes It All

The show is about being in the moment, not about recording contracts Justin Gorman, Channel 4

ing contracts”, Gorman said, adding that the concept was “bold and risky”. He said it would be “tongue in cheek”, with Carr bringing levity to proceedings.

He would not confirm when C4

will schedule the show, but it is thought likely that it will play over four weekends, starting in August.

The Singer Takes It All app was developed by digital agency Chunk in close collaboration with Endemol, and incorporates livevoting technology developed

by Tectonic Interactive.

C4 multiplatform commissioning editor for entertainment and comedy Jody Smith said the success of interactive technology on The Million Pound Drop Live provided the inspiration for The Singer Takes All. It All

She argued that the new show will be a “massive step” for second-screen viewing.

“We thought ‘how can we make voting exciting again?’ Lots of shows have implemented a voting system since it was pioneered by Big Brother, but the exciting thing about The Singer Takes It All is it’s all about a 90-second performance.

There are real moments of drama, but it still feels like a game.”

The Singer Takes it All was codeveloped by Endemol’s UK production arms Initial and Remarkable Television, the latter of which was behind The Million Pound Drop. Nic McNeilis is the executive producer, while the digital executive producer is Karen Troop.

Editor’s Choice

Broadcast, Zetland House, 5-25 Scrutton Street, London EC2A 4HJ or email chris.curtis@broadcastnow.co.uk

Online this week www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Chris Curtis, Editor

Top News

The key to making a connection Broadcasters are realising the potential of engaging with viewers

H

aving spent much of the past fortnight networking, first at MBI’s Creative Week and then Sheffield DocFest, I’ve been reminded of the power of connecting with people – and not just because the bar at the Mercure in Sheffield now rivals The George for the UK’s highest density of tipsy TV bigwigs per square metre.

If setting the world to rights over a latenight ale is fun, connecting with viewers

‘The means of discovering content is becoming at least as important as the means of searching for it is serious business for broadcasters, as borne out by many of the sessions at Creative Week’s Media Summit.

The BBC is learning all the time about how people are using iPlayer, and picking up tips about emerging viewing behaviour. In one session, head of iPlayer Dan Taylor revealed the marked discrepancy between the most-watched shows on the platform and the most-shared.

For May, the latter predictably included Radio 1 music offerings from One Direction and Ed Sheeran, but more surprisingly, two relatively esoteric docs: Kirsty Wark’s sexism investigation Blurred Lines, which achieved overnights of 614,000 on BBC2 – less than half the slot average – and Storyville’s SeaWorld doc Blackfish.

Taylor’s panel, which also included senior figures from YouTube and Facebook, suggested that the means of 2 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

è Shine Group’s Princess Productions has snapped up the rights to produce BBC1’s National Lottery, taking over from Endemol.

è BBC director of television Danny discovering content is becoming at least as important as the means of searching for it.

Tapping into the power of recommendation is high on the strategy list of many broadcasters, particularly Channel 4.

Chief executive David Abraham has been a data devotee for years and spoke of the “genius of social media as a form of recommendation”. He pointed out that the biggest audience is not always the most engaged, and explained that its registered viewers are whipped into a frenzy ahead of their favourite shows returning through direct emails and more sophisticated digital messaging.

That kind of passion is behind ITV’s strategy for new channel Encore, creating niche drama (by its standard) with the potential to travel the world. ITV believes that viewers’ enthusiasm for shows such as Game Of Thrones can more than counterbalance their relative lack of eyeballs.

This is ITV, a broadcaster traditionally focused on attracting the largest audience possible, accepting that there is also significant value in connecting with viewers in a deeper, more meaningful way.

ITV’s advertising strategy is evolving too. Keshet UK chief operating officer Sammy Nourmand revealed that the broadcaster is in negotiations about targeted advertising within the voting app for talent format Rising Star.

The idea is that second screen will enable viewers to register interest in ads they see, generating genuine leads. With C4 set to hand viewers real-time voting power in The Singer Takes It All (see page 1), the era of being better connected is already here.

Cohen has expressed frustration and concern about the recent sound issues experienced in BBC1 drama Quirke (pictured).

è Sky Vision has recouped its “eye-watering” investment in big-budget drama Fortitude after closing 10 pre-sales for the Sky Atlantic series.

Ratings Top Five 1 David Beckham Into The Unknown (below) hit the road with 4.6m viewers for BBC1 on Monday.

2 Britain’s Got Talent bowed out on Saturday night with 10.8m, its lowest finale audience on record.

3 Big Brother got under way on Channel 5 on Thursday with an audience of 2.1m – in line with last year’s launch.

4 BBC1 Irish drama Quirke ended with a series-low performance on Sunday as ITV’s Soccer Aid peaked with a crowd of 6.4m.

ITV2 reality series I Wanna Marry ‘Harry’ began with 286,000 viewers on Wednesday – well below the channel’s slot average.

5

Talking TV Podcast è Visit broadcastnow.co.uk or iTunes to download a special edition of the Talking TV podcast, featuring the action from the Media Summit and an interview with drama writer Andrew Davies.

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News & Analysis

Comedy Central bags Howard We tend to do things that aren’t business as usual to take the channel to the next level

BY Peter white

Comedy Central is taking its UK origination strategy to the next level after striking a deal with stand-up comedian Russell Howard for more than 20 hours of new content.

The Viacom-owned pay-TV broadcaster has ordered two series featuring Howard, whose Good News series is set to move from BBC3 to BBC2 this year ahead of the youth channel’s proposed online switch in 2015.

The first Comedy Central series is a stand-up format featuring exclusive Howard material, as well as two additional acts per episode.

The channel has ordered three 10 x 30-minute series of the as-yetuntitled show, which will start filming later this year in Camden ahead of a 2015 TX. “The show is a work in progress, but we have some exciting notional views about how it will look and feel. Nobody wanted a point-andshoot stand-up show,” said Jill Offman, managing director of Comedy Central UK and senior vicepresident of comedy at Viacom International Media Networks.

The second series is an adventure comedy that follows Howard on his next international tour. Comedy Central has ordered two 6 x

Jill Offman, Comedy Central UK

Russell Howard: Comedy Central has ordered two series with the comedian

30-minute runs that will start production in 2016. Both shows will be produced by Avalon Entertainment, the TV arm of Howard’s agency.

“The celebrity travel genre is well worn, so we’ll be looking at turning that on its head and being super-ambitious,” Offman said.

She told Broadcast she has been chasing Howard for five years, branding him the UK’s most popular comedian among 16 to 34 year-olds.

The former Discovery executive added that the move of Russell Howard’s Good News’ to BBC2 will benefit Comedy Central by giving Howard an even broader audience.

But she downplayed the ability to capitalise on talent as a result of BBC3’s demise.

The package agreement, which also includes pay-TV rights to all 10 series of Good News and four stand-up specials, is one of Comedy Central’s biggest deals

since it snatched the UK rights to Friends from Channel 4 in 2010.

“We tend to do things that aren’t business as usual every few years, which are intended to take the channel to the next level. Last year it was developing multi-camera sitcoms, three years ago it was Friends, and this is the next stage of growth,” she said.

Comedy Central’s multi-camera plans are currently taking shape.

It is piloting domestic sitcom I Live With Models from Ash Atalla’s Roughcut TV, and will take Big Talk Productions’ Mummy’s Boys (w/t) to a full series. It is expected to launch these in January 2015.

Offman said it is now on the hunt for a UK single-camera comedy to complement the studio shows. “We now have room for the right single-camera show, which has to be one with a bit of an edge,” she said. “We’re hoping that indies pitch the right idea.”

UKTV bolsters VoD offer as North gets Watch We have recognised that VoD is an important route to viewers now

BY alex farber

UKTV has beefed up the resource behind its VoD team as part of a wider restructure in which Steve North was handed control of the broadcaster’s primary entertainment channels.

North has added Watch to his remit as general manager of Dave and Gold, meaning he now oversees the three UKTV channels that commission original content. The role of general manager of Watch and Alibi, previously held by Steve Hornsey, has been made redundant.

Meanwhile, after the exit of Clare Laycock to run TLC in the UK, www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Emma Tennant, UKTV

North: head of main ent channels

director of network performance Emma Boston has been promoted to general manager. She will lead Really, Eden, Good Food and Home, as well as UKTV’s VoD services.

Controller Emma Tennant said UKTV’s crop of VoD services were effectively becoming the broadcaster’s 11th channel and required a similar level of support.

“We have put in the same structure on VoD as we have around our channels because we have recognised that it is such an important

route to viewers now,” said Tennant. “We need to make sure we are dealing with it in the way we deal with our linear channels, and give it the same level of focus.”

Boston will take charge of a major marketing push planned for next year, as well as ensuring the services receive sufficient support both internally and externally. She will work closely with head of VoD Kim Morris and head of commercial development Dan Fahy.

UKTV currently has dedicated VoD players for each of its channels, distributed across platforms including Sky, YouView, apps and online.

13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 3

News & Analysis In Brief ITV in binge-drinking row ITV’s production team paid the bar tab for a group of students during a Tonight investigation into binge drinking. Tonight: Britain’s Young Drinkers followed four students on a night out and put them through a series of health checks before and after to measure the alcohol’s impact on their bodies. ITV Studios’ factual arm Shiver paid for the students’ drinks, prompting a complaint from one of their parents. The matter was formally investigated by ITV.

Yentob in hacking fight Alan Yentob (left) is taking legal action against Trinity Mirror after accusing the Sunday Mirror of hacking his phone. Lawyers representing the BBC creative director appeared in court for a hearing on Wednesday, where they outlined his case alongside those of other public figures. Steel & Shamash barrister Richard Pitkethly is acting on behalf of Yentob.

Princess restructures Princess Productions has completed a senior management restructure as it plans for its next stage of growth. The Shine Group-owned indie has appointed Emma Hardy and Conor Baily as co-managing directors on a permanent basis.

Tuesday’s Child’s Will Spokes has been hired as joint head of programmes alongside Anna Blue, who was head of entertainment.

Cohen sorry for sound BBC director of television Danny Cohen has expressed frustration about the recent sound issues experienced in BBC1 drama Quirke. “The first thing to say is we repeat the apology we have already given with regards to sound,” Cohen said on BBC1 viewer feedback show Points Of View. “To get this setback is frustrating for us and frustrating for the producers.”

For the latest breaking news www.broadcastnow.co.uk 4 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

MTG in dispute over price paid for distributor DRG

BY Peter White

Modern Times Group (MTG) is embroiled in a dispute with investment firm Ingenious over the price it paid for UK distributor DRG. The pan-European media group, which operates more than 60 channels in 37 countries and owns Scandinavian studio Nice Entertainment Group, bought 92.4% of DRG from Ingenious Media Active Capital in a £13.2m deal in June 2013.

The remaining 7.6% of the distributor is owned by recently reinstalled chief executive Jeremy Fox and other members of its management team, giving the company a total value of £15m.

But Broadcast understands that MTG is quarrelling over the purchase price, arguing that DRG no longer holds the international distribution rights to some shows that it claimed to have in its catalogue when the business was acquired.

Sweden-based MTG initially threatened legal action against Ingenious, which first invested in DRG in December 2006, but it is now understood that the two

Babylon: Danny Boyle’s comedy drama is distributed internationally by DRG

parties have brought in accountancy firm Grant Thornton to work out a compromise.

DRG sells series including Doc Martin, The Inbetweeners and Danny Boyle’s comedy drama Babylon.

Takeovers of international distributors can be fraught with difficulty because, in some cases, they only hold the global sales rights for a certain period and producers often have a change of ownership clause, allowing them to take back their rights following a deal.

MTG Studios beat the likes of Sky Vision to the acquisition of DRG last year. The deal was led by former executive vice-president of content and chairman and chief executive Patrick Svensk, who left the business in May and was replaced by Morten Aass. The latter was formerly chief executive of Nice, which MTG bought for around £70m in September 2013.

MTG and Ingenious declined to comment.

BBC prepares for job cuts in news and radio

BY Alexandra Chapman

The spectre of Delivering Quality First has returned to haunt the BBC over the past fortnight, with the corporation preparing to make job cuts across news and radio.

The BBC’s project to save £800m a year by 2016/17 has been relatively low-key recently, but new phases of the scheme have sparked fresh anxiety internally about redundancies and further service cuts.

It is expected that BBC News will look to shed 500 jobs over the next year, while the corporation’s radio division announced plans this week to make 65 redundancies as part of a major restructure. It has contributed to concerns that

Harding: ‘likely to be redundancies’

the BBC’s television unit may also face further cuts.

In an email seen by Broadcast, BBC director of news and current affairs James Harding told staff last week “there is no escaping the fact that there are

likely to be a significant number of redundancies”.

He said he did “not pretend that the months ahead are going to be easy”, and confirmed that “firm proposals will be made in July”.

The proposed cuts and the BBC’s offer of a 1% pay increase enraged the National Union of Journalists, which announced its intention to ballot for strike action on Tuesday. Members said they felt “betrayed” and argued that director general Tony Hall’s “honeymoon is over”.

The BBC has consistently stressed that it must deal with the licence fee agreement it hammered out with the government in 2010, which froze its income at £3.6bn a year. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

News & Analysis

Formats are back in fashion No retreat for ob docs, but light and authentic formats are set for a post-Gogglebox revival Gogglebox gives controllers more confidence in formats that dip into people’s lives

BY CHRIS CURTIS

Commissioners and producers at Sheffield DocFest 2014 suggested that the ob-doc renaissance is here to stay, but there was also a sense that more factual formats are on the cards.

The BBC and Sky have led the ob-doc trend with shows such as Inside Claridge’s, Iceland Foods: Life In The Freezer Cabinet, Harrow: A Very British School and Greggs: More Than Meats The Pie. Producers at the festival suggested that the ob-doc appetite remains strong, and said access to businesses and organisations had become easier to negotiate as a result of some of the successes.

But Gogglebox was mentioned a lot, by both commissioners and producers, and its influence is expected to be felt with a shift towards lightly formatted factual.

Emma Willis, BBC

Hunt for authenticity BBC1, BBC2 and BBC4 head of documentaries Emma Willis said she thought the Studio Lambert hit would give controllers “more confidence” in terms of formats that “dip into people’s lives in ways that are funny and sad”.

And Alison Kirkham, head of commissioning for factual features and formats for BBC1 and BBC2, spoke of “gentle formatting” and showed a glimpse of The Gift, Wall to Wall Television’s forthcoming series for BBC1.

“Authenticity” seemed to be the buzz word when it came to formats, which producers indicated could help define channels, rather than less returnable ob docs.

Channel 4 head of factual entertainment Liam Humphreys acknowledged the “flight from formats” in recent years, with viewers rejecting “neat resolutions in part four” in favour of something more unpredictable. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

The Island With Bear Grylls: set up a construct and let events play out

He suggested that the success of The Island With Bear Grylls was down to the technique of setting up a construct and then letting events play out naturally (albeit with some potential food introduced to the island to help keep contributors alive).

ITV is returning to constructed factual formats with the 4 x 60-minute Bring Back Borstal from Wall to Wall, which has echoes of previous immersive formats such as Bad Lads Army Army.

Jo Clinton-Davis, ITV controller of popular factual, described it as a social experiment and said lightly worn constructs could deliver very moving and entertaining content, citing the 7 Up brand as an example. She has just ordered medical format The Miracle from Optomen Television (see page 10).

In factual entertainment, C4 is on the hunt for around three big channel-defining events a year, such as The Jump, and is interested in more live programming – as is Channel 5. Factual commissioner Guy Davies said the latter would continue its live experiments after the success of its issue-led debates, such as The Big BenLive. efits Row: Live He took it as a compliment that those shows were described as “Jeremy Kyle meets Newsnight” Gogglebox: formatted factual a talking point

and said producers should look to tap into C5’s sense of “tabloid intelligence”.

Davies added that C5 was not wedded to celebrity names fronting factual, pointing to The Hotel Inspector’s Alex Polizzi’s emergence as key talent, as well as Autopsy: The Last Hours Of… presenter Dr Richard Shepherd, who he hinted would be used again.

Head of documentaries Nick Mirsky said C4’s viewers were often wary of presenters, given that its fi xed-rig series put them in the middle of the action without mediation. But he is open to exploring an on-screen presence of doc-makers themselves, citing Louis Theroux’s style as the direction the channel may take. He said the emphasis should be on making on-screen presence feel as real as possible, and told producers to shy away from using celebrities.

Separately, Willis confirmed that BBC1 at 10.35pm has been earmarked for BBC3 factual content and that it “behoves BBC1 and BBC2 to take some of that on”.

She also indicated that she is keen to find a series for BBC2 that features teenagers or young people.

Coupled with the move of Russell Howard’s Good News to BBC2 later this year, there is a feeling that controller Kim Shillinglaw is looking to make it skew younger.

There were also hints of some tension within BBC factual divisions. History specialist Martin Davidson said it was a “blessing and a curse” that his genre had “no one bending Tony Hall’s ear like [National Theatre boss] Nick Hytner”, referring to the director general’s public preference for greater emphasis on the arts.

13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 5

News & Analysis

Ofcom blasted over diversity Unions blame media regulator’s lack of action for TV’s failure to make progress on BAME issues

BY ALEXANDRA CHAPMAN

Ofcom’s lack of action and transparency on equality monitoring has contributed to the broadcasting industry’s “catastrophic” failure to achieve progress on diversity, according to the UK’s most powerful creative sector unions.

The Federation of Entertainment Unions (FEU) has written to the media regulator’s chairman, Dame Patricia Hodgson, outlining its concerns about declines in black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) staff in the UK television industry.

It said Ofcom’s 2005 decision to keep confidential the equality monitoring information from public service broadcasters such as Channel 4 and ITV has “had the effect of allowing them to avoid being held to public account over their success or failure to employ a diverse workforce”.

The letter, seen by Broadcast, also criticised Ofcom’s decision to close the Broadcasting Equality and Training Regulator in 2010.

The media regulator did this in the belief that the government intended to abolish section 27 of the Communications Act, promoting equality.

“The broadcasting licenceholders will not take sufficient action to increase diversity without a return to proactive intervention from Ofcom,” wrote National Union of Journalists (NUJ) general secretary Michelle Stanistreet, on behalf of the FEU. “Only by requiring each licenceholder to undertake equality monitoring, enforcing this requirement, and publishing the data, will the catastrophic decline in minority ethnic employment be reversed.”

Quoting figures from a Creative Skillset Employment Census last year, which showed that the number of BAME staff working in TV had fallen by 16% in the 6 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

Hodgson: the FEU has written to the chair of Ofcom about concerns of declining BAME staff in the TV industry

Broadcasters will not take sufficient action to increase diversity without Ofcom’s intervention Michelle Stanistreet, FEU

three years to 2012, it reminded Ofcom of its statutory duty to promote equal opportunities.

An Ofcom spokeswoman said: “Diversity and equality are central to the values of Ofcom and we recognise the significance of understanding and reflecting the society we serve. Ofcom is currently considering how to progress our work in this area. We are working with government, broadcasters and industry bodies, such as the Creative Diversity Network, to examine how broadcasters could accurately monitor the sector and help deliver equal opportunities for BAME employees.”

The FEU – which includes Bectu, Equity and the NUJ – sent similar versions of the letter to the BFI and Arts Council

England, calling on them to contribute to equality monitoring.

This letter said: “As a consequence of the creative industries’ failure to introduce transparency with regard to their equality monitoring, and subsequent decline in BAME representation, the FEU has agreed to make this a priority campaign.”

The campaign was outlined at Bectu’s Freelancers’ Fair in London last week and was welcomed by industry executives on the From Here to Diversity panel.

Diversity barrier London Live commissioning executive Derren Lawford argued that “boldness” was needed when tackling diversity issues.

BSkyB acting head of drama Cameron Roach added: “Those who employ people in the industry are a bit lazy and resort to people they know.”

He said that this acts as a barrier for people from different backgrounds trying to enter television.

But BBC1 and BBC2 features and formats commissioning editor Tom Edwards (left) warned that a strict quota scheme, which has been suggested by comedian Lenny Henry and C4 newsreader Krishnan Guru-

Murthy, could potentially harm the creative process.

“My concern about quotas is that they may not be the best way to arrive at the most creative ideas,” said Edwards, who is responsible for shows including BBC1’s Countryfile and Antiques Roadshow.

He added that while diversity needs to be addressed and a tangible plan devised, targets were limiting and could make people more focused on “ticking boxes” than getting ideas “good enough to go on television”.

Referring to Henry’s call earlier this year for the BBC to ring-fence funds for BAME shows, Edwards said “trying to commission a set number of shows from a set number of suppliers who are in some way fit [for purpose] isn’t the best way to come up with the most creative ideas”.

He added: “If you are observing that sort of model, you have to ensure that the commissioning and production phases remain creative, given that you’ve introduced this artificial arbitrary pressure.

“When it comes to diversity, rather than commissioning a show that only speaks to a narrow group, I would aim to ensure that there was more incidental portrayal in different ways.” www.broadcastnow.co.uk

News & Analysis

‘Star quality shone from every pore’ RICH HARDCASTLE

Comedian, actor and writer Rik Mayall died this week at the age of 56. He had recently recorded an episode of Dave’s Crackanory and was due to film series two of Greg Davies’ Channel 4 sitcom Man Down this autumn. Man Down producer Spencer Millman and Blackadder writer Richard Curtis offer their personal tributes

Spencer Millman Producer, Man Down

I may only have been a very, very, very small part of Rik Mayall’s life, but he was a huge part of mine.

The Young Ones, Bottom, his scene-stealing Lord Flashheart in Blackadder, The New Statesman: all comedies that I grew up with and loved. A true comedy genius.

Having the chance to produce Rik in Man Down will always be a highlight of my career. It is not often you get to meet, let alone work with, one of your heroes, and he did not disappoint. I remember during our read-through thinking to myself: “That’s Rik bloody Mayall. How lucky am I?” Rik had an aura about him; star quality shone from every pore.

But behind the character, there was an incredibly sweet and charming man who was excited to take on a new challenge, so grateful that he had been given the chance to try something new at this stage in his career.

He had his moments, like everyone does on a film set. He found it difficult to tone down his performance. Honestly, you have

Man Down: Rik Mayall (right) shares a laugh on set with writer and screen son Greg Davies

We have lost not only a true genius but, more importantly, a genuinely nice man no idea how hard it was telling Rik Mayall to be “less Rick, less Ritchie”, to be calm and gentle so that the lunatic turns of his dad character would have more impact. It took time for Rik to take this on board, but when he did, it was a magic moment on set. We just sat back and smiled at the genius at work.

Rik was committed to the job.

Always asking to line run, always wanting to know his motivation, always wanting to play with the physical aspects of his character.

He had an incredible ability, even with all his knowledge and experience, to take on board other people’s notes and thoughts, and not only to put them into practice but also to compliment the idea even if deep down he might have thought it was shit. A true team player.

On the eve of our first transmission, I sent Rik a text: “Thank you and hope you enjoy the programme”. He replied: “Thanks for your kind text Spencer, and thanks for the gig – great script, lovely people and fabulous production.

Fingers, genitals and everything else crossed for tonight eh? Once more unto the breach dear friend!

Firm handshake. Rik. X” I have kept the text on my phone and will continue to cherish it – the equivalent to not washing your hands having just met your hero. I

was so looking forward to meeting up with my smoking partner again next month for series two and it saddens me that that won’t happen. I will miss our chats about comedy, family and life.

We have lost not only a true genius but, more importantly, a genuinely nice man. He had time for everyone on set, always wanting to talk and reminisce (he tried talking to my son about Drop Dead Fred until I reminded him that my kid was seven and wouldn’t have seen it).

The last time I saw Rik, I asked him: “So Rik, I said I wanted you to enjoy filming Man Down. Did you?” He looked me in the eye and said: “Enjoy it, Spencer? I fucking loved it!” With that, he gave me a hug and headed into his car. It is a moment I will never forget.

RIP comrade x

The ‘irresistible force’ who loved to laugh quite quiet and would just give up on the weeks that Rik was there. In his prime, Rik was just an irresistible force, and on stage he was amazingly funny.

When he did the first Comic On Blackadder, Rik Relief single, Living Doll by The (right) was just extraor- Young Ones With Cliff Richard, dinary. When we met, he it was his lack of compromise that said: “I’ll only do it if every single line is funny. made it. He said: “I don’t really care what the record I don’t want at any point to be marking time.”

That was an amazing challenge and it sounds like, I just want was hilarious because Rowan Atkinson is to say some funny Richard Curtis Co-writer, Blackadder; co-founder, Comic Relief

8 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

things on it, and I want the video to be really funny.”

He was a gorgeous man and he found things funny, which is a great joy. A lot of comedians know, and calculate, that things are funny but he’d watch The Young Ones and be roaring with laughter – he’d be saying “here comes a good bit, wait…” and then completely crack up all over again when it happened.

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

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Commissioning News

ITV examines medical miracles Factual formats rich in emotional heart and remarkable human stories are key to us

BY Matthew Campelli

ITV is to explore “miracle” medical procedures and bad driving in factual series from Richard Klein’s team.

The Miracle (w/t) is a 3 x 60-minute series documenting the stories of people having their sight, hearing or ability to walk restored by modern medicine.

The Optomen Television prod­ uction will cast light on pioneering operations carried out by clinicians approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in the UK and the US’ Food and Drug Administration.

ITV is hoping that the factual format can follow in the footsteps of Long Lost Family, which has grown into a consistent ratings winner for the broadcaster.

ITV factual controller Jo ClintonDavis said: “Factual formats rich in emotional heart and remarkable human stories are key to us. To find one that takes us into the world of cutting-edge, life-changing medicine is exciting and unique.”

Optomen creative director and The Miracle executive producer Sue

Sky and Discovery send Monty Halls to Lost Worlds Former Royal Marine Monty Halls (pictured) will explore some of the world’s greatest natural wonders with world-class climber Leo Houlding in Discovery and Sky 3D’s latest commission. Discovery Networks Western Europe has commissioned Brighton-based indie Electric Sky to make the 6 x 60-minute series Lost Worlds With Monty Halls And Leo Houlding.

The series will use extreme climbing techniques and new technology to access and film some of the world’s most remote areas.

Fresh One wins first order for Canada’s W Network Jamie Oliver’s Fresh One Produc10 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

Jo Clinton-Davis, ITV

Food Glorious Food: Syco co-pro was Optomen’s last major format for ITV

Murphy added: “It’s not every day that you get to work on something so emotionally powerful and genuinely transformative. We’re looking forward to taking viewers deep inside the human stories behind these remarkable procedures.”

The last major format Optomen produced for ITV was Food Glorious Food, a co-production with Simon Cowell’s indie Syco Entertainment.

ITV has also commissioned 6 x 30-minute The Undriveables from Shine TV. The “warm and witty”

format will follow the progress of two perennial learner drivers as they try to pass their test with the help of some of the UK’s top driving instructors.

As Time Goes By actor Geoffrey Palmer narrates their movements on and off the road, while fixed-rig cameras in the car will be used to capture the drivers’ emotions.

The series was ordered by factual commissioner Priya Singh and ITV director of factual Klein, while Alf Lawrie is the executive producer.

tions has landed its first co-production with North American indie Bristow Global Media. The indies are co-pro­ducing 10 x 60-minute cooking competition Pressure Cooker for Canadian broadcaster W Network. It is the first project to come out of Fresh One’s partnership with the GroupM Entertainmentbacked North American indie, which was signed in August 2013.

war or civil unrest. Lambert will renew his partnership with Quicksilver Media for the film after working with the production company on the critically acclaimed Syria: Across The Lines, which aired on C4 in March 2013.

Bafta-winner Lambert set for new Dispatches project Bafta-winning director Olly Lambert is preparing to embark on his latest Dispatches project for Channel 4. Although the location and subject of the film is yet to be revealed, Broadcast understands it will focus on a nation torn apart by

Liberty Bell takes on BBC1 scrap yard challenge BBC1 is to go behind the scenes of the north-west’s biggest scrap yard in a primetime series from Liberty Bell Productions. In the 6 x 30-minute Scrappers, the Avalon Entertainment-owned indie will lift the lid on Terry and Lyndsay Walker’s Bolton-based empire, featuring their dysfunctional workforce and sometimes fractious working partnership.

“Scrappers is about a unique and successful family business with a big heart and I’m delighted BBC1 has chosen to get behind it in this way,” said executive producer Jamie Isaacs.

“We hope The Undriveables will prove a fun and entertaining ride for the audience, and hopefully lead to lots of jubilant new drivers on Britain’s roads,” Singh said.

Klein is yet to fully outline his ambitions at ITV and did not feature on any panels during Sheffield DocFest this week. His other commissions for the commercial broadcaster include an ambitious ob-doc on Broadmoor Hospital and a 3 x 60-minute Alan Titchmarsh series, with the working title Britain’s Best Gardens.

For details of all commissions, see

http://greenlight.broadcastnow.co.uk

The Garden to go inside Tatler for BBC1 Inside Claridge’s (below) producer The Garden Productions is to go behind the scenes at high-society magazine Tatler for a BBC2 series.

The three-part access piece will offer a window onto a world of

“power, class and glamour” and was commissioned by Emma Willis, head of documentaries for BBC1, BBC2 and BBC4. It follows BBC2’s plans to go behind the scenes of Country Life in a separate documentary produced

by Spun Gold. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

so ye a bo r’s ok ev no ent w s to ol av d o oid u t di we sa ll pp in oi ad nt v me an nt ce

E ÂŁ1 arl 95 y B +V ird AT st La

INDUSTRY LEADING SPEAKERS

commissioning budget unlocked For the second year running, this event will bring you face-to-face with the biggest names in broadcasting, offering keynotes and networking opportunities with those who have the power and the pounds to get your shows made.

Peter Fincham, director of television, channels and online, IT V

Jay Hunt, chief creative officer, Channel 4

Charlotte Moore, controller, BBC One

Richard Watsham, director of commissioning, UKTV

Rachel Job, channel editor, History & H2, A+E Networks UK

Ed Sayer, commissioning editor, National Geographic Channels International

To book your place contact hannah.grix@mb-insight.com | 0203 033 2889

www.broadcast-forums.com Join the conversation @MBIEvents #CFF For sponsorship enquiries please contact: Event Partner sonya.jacobs@broadcastnow.co.uk l 020 3033 2935 patricia.arescy@broadcastnow.co.uk l 020 3033 4287

1 JULY 2014 | Kings Place, London, N1 9AG

Speakers confirmed:

International News

INTERNATIONAL

TV FORUM

Creative Week Special

BBCW hands sales team £5m There’s value to be driven and we’re putting our money into the sales force so they’re able to extract that value

BY peter white

BBC Worldwide has made a £5m investment in its international sales force as it bids to beef up its global distribution business.

The BBC’s commercial arm has freed up the cash following its company-wide restructure, in which more power was handed to its regional teams.

Speaking at Broadcast’s Inter­ national TV Forum last week, BBC Worldwide president of global markets Paul Dempsey said: “We’re investing more than we’ve ever done in any single year, boosting the effectiveness of our sales force.”

The pot of money, which will be allocated over the BBC’s 2014/15 financial year, will be spent on new internal systems, marketing, customer relationship management tools and data and research facilities for its teams in more than 20 countries around the world.

“I’m talking about investing in the capabilities of our distribution force,” Dempsey said. “There’s real value to be driven and we’re putting our money into the sales force so they can extract it.”

Paul Dempsey, BBC Worldwide

Dempsey: bolstering distribution business with investment in sales force

The BBCW sales boss was speaking at the event, held at Bafta, alongside execs from ITV Studios, Endemol Worldwide Distribution, Shine International, Zodiak Rights and All3Media International – the first time these distributors had shared such a platform.

Zodiak Rights recently set up its first insight team, headed by former All3Media digital exec Gary Woolf. Chief executive Steve Macallister, who was previously BBCW’s president and managing

director of sales and distribution, said: “One of the first things I did when I joined was put in place an insight team. You absolutely need to understand consumer patterns and this is accelerating with the fragmentation of media.”

Nadine Nohr, chief executive of Shine International, which distributes series such as Broadchurch and MasterChef, agreed that the world has become more complex and it is essential to perform “careful choreography”.

“It’s about sweating the asset.

It’s about making as much as you can from what you’ve got, not necessarily about volume,” she added.

All of the companies agreed that while competition for UK rights is aggressive, there is enough content to go around.

Endemol’s European executive director Mark Lawrence said it was vital to make UK producers feel special when distributing their series. “We’ve tried to allay fears with UK producers that big doesn’t necessarily mean bad – you’re not going to get sucked into the sausage machine and get lost,” he said. “British distri­ butors are as good as, and sometimes better than, the American studios.”

Broadcasters welcome year-round US orders BY alex farber

Major British broadcasters have welcomed US networks’ move towards year-round commissioning, but have downplayed plans to launch all their imports on the same day as their US TX. American networks have significantly increased the number of shows they order straight to series – such as Vince Gilligan-penned Battle Creek and ancient Egyptian thriller Hieroglyph – meaning their May commissioning streak is becoming more fragmented.

Having recently returned from the LA Screenings, Catherine Mackin, director of programme acquisitions at UKTV, said the move has helped British buyers pick up the best shows. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

At least you know you don’t have to wait until the following May to find your next show Catherine Mackin, UKTV

“The move to year-round scheduling means at least you know other things are coming out and you don’t have to wait until the following May to find your next show,” she said.

However, acquisition chiefs for Sky, Channel 5 and Fox agreed that launching acquisitions on the same day as their US transmission only worked for major serialised shows, such as Game Of Thrones and 24.

“UK audiences are not familiar with a show being scheduled for five consecutive weeks, then it taking a two-week break before returning for another three,” said C5 head of acquisitions Katie Keenan.

Keenan said she wanted to build on the recent acquisition of Australian drama Wentworth by

picking up more shows outside of the Hollywood studio system.

“The success of BBC4 and More 4 makes me feel there is the space to do foreign-language drama – and [C5 director of programming] Ben Frow would like us to do more – so we are increasingly looking around the world,” she said.

Sky Atlantic, meanwhile, is still looking for star-studded shows outside of its HBO output deal.

“We have the ability to buy round the edge, just to add a slightly different flavour,” said head of acquisitions Sarah Wright.

Fox UK head of programming Toby Etheridge added that marketing its US acquisitions was more important than ever. “You can’t put on the poster: ‘It really gets going in episode four’,” he joked.

13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 13

International News

INTERNATIONAL

TV FORUM

Creative Week Special

Nordic World seeks UK indie rights deals

BY Peter White

Scandinavian distributor Nordic World is to spend a “large portion” of its £4m international rights war chest with UK indies.

The company hopes to build on recent first-look deals with UK indie Boxatricks, the company set up by Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? co-creators Michael Whitehill and David Briggs, and Farm Factor producer Cwmni Da in Wales.

Speaking at Broadcast’s International TV Forum, chief operating officer Jan Salling said it would pursue international distribution rights from British producers in scripted and non-scripted genres.

“I have ¤5m [£4m] to spend over the next couple of years so I want producers to help me spend it,” he said. “Half of this is to be invested in drama, whether it’s Englishspeaking or Nordic noir, and half of it is going to be available for me to play around in the non-scripted area. A large portion of that will end up in the UK.” Nordic World is owned by a conglomerate of Scandinavian

Mammon: Nordic World political thriller airs on More 4 in the UK

broadcasters, encompassing TV4 Sweden, TV2 Norway, TV2 Denmark, MTV3 Finland, NRK Norway and YLE Finland.

The company has had success with Scandinavian series including political thriller Mammon, which airs on More 4 in the UK, quirky comedy Dag, which is being reworked as a UK version for C4, and period drama The Seaside Hotel.

It is now looking to ramp up its acquisition of English-speaking rights, which Salling said are

easier to sell internationally. He is planning to open offices in London and Dublin to help with the push.

The plan follows the completion of Nordic World’s buyout of Dutch formats firm Absolutely Independent, which owned the rights to the Dutch format that became ITV hit Long Lost Family. Salling said that although the deal was announced in January, it was signed only last week, and Absolutely’s 150 formatstrong catalogue will help supercharge its international output.

Keshet pins hopes on Rising Star for production push Homeland producer Keshet hopes that the ITV version of Rising Star will help take its UK production division to the next level.

The Israeli company established a UK production presence in 2013 and will co-produce musical talent format Rising Star with ITV Studios next year.

“I hope Rising Star will do for us in non-scripted what Homeland did in scripted,” said Keren Shahar, head of distribution and acquisitions at Keshet Inter­national. “We hope it will establish us as a legitimate UK production company.”

The company, which also has projects in development including autism drama The A Word with Channel 4, now hopes to deliver original UK series from its local team. This includes chief operating officer Sammy Nourmand, who used to run super-indie DCD Media, and head of co-productions and scripted Sara Johnson.

“The mothership is in Israel but the creative juices that we have going around the [office in London] is part of the reason why we’re here,” said Shahar.

Keshet International’s other formats include gameshow Boom and drama MICE.

All3 ups third-party content BY peter White

All3Media International is significantly increasing the number of hours of third-party programming in its catalogue as it seeks to balance its pipeline of content.

The distribution division of the UK super-indie expects that as much as half of its new content in 2015 will come from third-party producers. This is a major increase on recent years, with the company noting that in 2013, 85% of its 6,500-hour catalogue came from All3Media-owned indies, such as Company Pictures and North One Television.

The distributor has been boosting the number of first-look deals it strikes. This year it has closed 14 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

Hinterland: drama acquisition

output arrangements with Swan Films, the indie behind Grayson Perry: Who Are You, and New Pictures, which is making BBC1 drama The Missing.

It has also been snapping up big-budget drama on an ad-hoc basis, such as S4C’s Welsh-noir series Hinterland, produced by Tinopolis-owned Fiction Factory.

Channel 4 is eyeing a UK version of Canadian property format Love It Or List It (pictured). The broadcaster is in talks with Mythbusters producer and distributor Beyond over the series, which was produced by Canadian indie Big Coast Productions for female-skewing channel W Network. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Multiplatform News IN BRIEF 50 Cent drama set for UK 50 Cent’s drama Power is to be made available in the UK after US cable network Starz struck a series of online deals. The drama, which is executive produced by the rapper, will be available via Amazon Instant Video, Blinkbox, Google Play, Apple iTunes and Sony Entertainment Network. Power is an 8 x 60-minute CBS Television Studios-produced drama about a drugs kingpin-turned nightclub impresario.

BGT scores a hit with app Polls, quizzes and voting opportunities helped Britain’s Got Talent (pictured) record an 80% active engagement rate with its app for Saturday’s final.

The app, developed by Tellybug, was downloaded 1.5 million times across the series – up 40% from the 1.1 million downloads recorded last year. During the final episode, 236,000 of the 297,000 users (80%) who had the app open engaged with the content, reflecting the trend throughout the series.

Sony PS orders drama Sony PlayStation has ordered a TV adaptation of graphic novel Powers – its first move into commissioning drama to rival the likes of Netflix, Amazon and Xbox. It has partnered with sister television studio Sony Pictures Television to launch the series, which is a cross between a superhero and a police story.

Armah to join CNBC US news channel CNBC has hired John Armah as head of digital for territories outside of America. He has more than 17 years of digital, social network and mobile experience and has advised Unilever, Channel 4 and Ticketmaster. Armah will be based in London and will report to John Casey, senior vicepresident of international news and programming.

For the latest breaking news www.broadcastnow.co.uk 16 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

Freeview offers catch-up in challenge to YouView

BY ALEX FARBER

Freeview’s planned internet-connected TV service is bidding to take advantage of the growing perception that YouView is a broadband-bundled service.

Freeview and Digital UK last week revealed that a five-year plan had been signed off by Freeview’s shareholders (the BBC, ITV, Sky, Channel 4 and Arqiva) to develop a service, dubbed Freeview Connect, that will offer viewers access to linear channels and on-demand content.

The shareholders’ catch-up services – including iPlayer, ITV Player and 4oD – are likely to be the first to be made available, with Freeview keen to encourage other free-to-air broadcasters to join the new platform.

Ilse Howling, previously Freeview managing director, has been appointed to the new role of managing director of connected TV for Digital UK to ensure the service is adopted by TV and set-top box manufacturers.

Howling (below) said that because rival connected-TV service YouView is mainly being distributed as part of a package of premium services by BT and TalkTalk, an opportunity has opened up for Freeview to exploit.

“YouView has done a tremendous job in breaking new ground and has been a pioneer in its achievements,” Howling said.

“But in consumer terms, it is associated with being bundled with BT and TalkTalk. What we are looking to do is different and the critical piece is it will be available in retail.”

While YouView is also available as a direct-toconsumer proposition, the bulk of its 1 million sales are made via its ISP stakeholders.

Freeview has previously supported VoD content via its Freeview HD platform but the specific services

iPlayer: BBC service is likely to be one of the first on Freeview Connect

If you love subs-free TV, the natural step is to integrate live TV with catch-up Ilse Howling, Digital UK

offered have been selected by individual television manufacturers, with no consistency guaranteed.

“There is a fragmented offer across different manufacturers and for consumers it is quite confusing to have an array of different services,” Howling said. “No one has yet created a simple compelling consumer proposition with a consistent core offer and the umbrella brand that says ‘this is free to consume and high quality’.”

Howling added she was confident that consumer awareness of Freeview would translate into adoption of

the service. “The value of the Freeview brand is a great advantage because people have already bought into it.”

No launch date has been set for Freeview Connect, which has been reported to have secured a £100m investment from its shareholders.

“The key for us is to keep pace with the expectations of the Freeview audience and aim to meet their needs and give them something of value,” said Howling.

“If you love subscription-free TV, the natural step is to integrate live TV with catch-up.”

She added that a Digital UK study of 8,000 people found that more than 50% said access to catchup services would make them more likely to stay with Freeview.

Separately, subscription-free satellite TV service Freesat has bolstered its 200-strong channel offering this week with the launch of Forces TV. The service, dedicated to the armed forces, is being led by Services Sound and Vision Corporation chief executive and former head of Sky News Nick Pollard. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

audience data system

audience data system

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Technology & Facilities

HD EVOLVED

Creative Week Special

4K AND BEYOND

Calls for clarity of 4K ‘experience’ Wider dynamic range is what people want, or they will just end up with a big TV set with more pixels

BY George Bevir

The importance of higher frame rates, greater bit depth and wider dynamic range were stressed during a day of debate about the implications of creating and deliv­ ering high-resolution content.

With panellists at a Broadcastorganised HD Evolved session outlining the range of definitions for what constitutes Ultra High Definition (UHD) and 4K content, European Broadcasting Union (EBU) senior project manager Adi Kouadio said the organisation was working to make sure viewers will have a “single experience”.

“There should be a ‘wow’ effect,” he said. “Viewers shouldn’t have to ask if it is UHD content or not.

Several parameters play a role in this, including high frame rate and dynamic range.”

Kouadio said that the minimum frame rate for sport should be 60fps, the same as the BBC’s upcoming 4K World Cup trials.

“The wow factor will come at 100fps and 120fps. However, that doesn’t mean you need 120fps for every UHD programme, and there is a need for variable UHD frame rates,” he added. “Wider dynamic range would also help viewers see details in blacks and areas of highlights – this is what people want, otherwise they will

Doghouse takes on Tay Doghouse Post Production has appointed Fred Tay (below) to the role of senior colourist and VFX specialist. Tay, who joined the Bristol facility this week, will work alongside company director, colourist and online editor Mark Richard Adams. Tay’s recent credits include Andy’s Wild Adventures and The First Georgians: The German Kings Who Made Britain.

Filmscape Media sets up shop at The Bottle Yard Hire firm Filmscape Media has opened a facility at The Bottle Yard 18 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

Adi Kouadio, EBU

4K panellists (clockwise from top left): Border, Kouadio, King and Horton

just end up with a big TV set with more pixels.”

Ericsson strategic product manager Mark Horton said that although the vendor has not yet tested high dynamic range, he con­ sidered it an interesting factor because unlike pixel count, it isn’t linked to screen size. “[HDR] can benefit screens from mobile phones to cinemas, whereas resolution is size-dependent, and the tests we have done so far suggest there is little point in anything smaller than a 55-inch UHD screen,” he said.

BBC television technology con­ troller Andy King said the avail­ ability of UHD displays could position the nascent technology more favourably than during the early stages of HD. But fellow pan­ ellist and IHS principal analyst Ed Border argued that there is no great demand for the technology from consumers at present, even though manufacturers are “con­ stantly looking for new features”.

He added: “Unlike 3D, there is potentially more advantage [for the industry] because it is useful further

Studios in Bristol. Originally spe­ cialising in digital 35mm cinema­ tography equipment, Filmscape recently launched a lighting rental division, offering HMI lighting, Fresnel lighting, Kino Flo, lighting grip and cable distribution, which it will develop from its Bristol base.

accessible to designers, who need “powerful yet simple appli­ cations to quickly iterate on and finalise ideas”.

Doreen Lorenzo joins board of The Foundry Former Frog Design president Doreen Lorenzo has joined The Foundry’s board of directors.

The appointment is part of the company’s attempts to streamline its technology to make it more

up the chain. There are advantages to shooting [but not delivering] content in 4K, whereas 3D just costs more money to create.”

King, who showed some scenes from upcoming BBC natural history documentary Life Story, which was shot at 4K, 5K and 6K, agreed. “For something like natural history, the quality ripples through the chain,” he said.

His point was echoed by direc­ tor of photography Colin Elves, who said that DoPs often opt for cameras that shoot at higher reso­ lutions because of other functions – not because of their high pixel count. He said: “The Arri Alexa shoots 2.5K but it’s popular with cameramen because of its dynamic range, and because it produces very flattering images. For me, shooting at 4K and above is about producing better HD resolution.”

HD Evolved was supported by Panasonic and SGO.

Roll to Record supplies tech for Educating Walthamstow Roll to Record is providing the fixed-rig technical hardware, plan­ ning and logistics, plus operational crew, for Twofour’s Educating Walthamstow (w/t). It has supplied and installed 68 cameras, includ­ ing five Panasonic HE-60 cameras, at Frederick Bremer School in East London. The set-up also includes 63 fixed mics, with an additional 24 radio mics used by contributors.

Quantel updates Pablo Rio Quantel has released updated soft­ ware for its Pablo Rio finishing

system that adds support for XAVC and ProRes 422. The eighth release of the software (above) this year focuses on integration into post pipelines, and includes support for the latest Red cameras and conform of Avid effects. Apple ProRes 422 support includes encoding to ProRes 4444, ProRes 422 (HQ), ProRes 422, ProRes 422 (LT) and ProRes 422 (proxy). The new software also supports conform of Avid DVE metadata. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

THE VFX SUMMIT

IMAGINATION UNLIMITED

Jellyfish expands as tax credits boost VFX BY george bevir

VFX firm Jellyfish Pictures has launched an animation unit that will open in Brixton next month.

Speaking at the VFX Summit organised by Broadcast publisher MBI last week, Jellyfish chief executive Phil Dobree revealed the expansion plans and joined panellists in praising the impact of tax breaks on the animation and visual effects sectors.

He said: “Our new facility will create 60 new jobs that definitely would not be here if it wasn’t for the animation tax credits.”

Jellyfish Animation has already begun work on a children’s show for an unnamed US broadcaster.

The 52-part series will transfer from the company’s central London office to Brixton when the facility opens in mid-July.

“We could have done the creative and conceptual work [for the US series] here, but without the UK tax breaks we would have had to do the heavy lifting in another country,” said Dobree. “Creative Skillset’s support also means we can get people out of college and up to speed without big overheads.”

VFX Summit: Cohen (left) and Dobree hail UK animation tax credits

Jellyfish Animation’s 4,000 sq ft base on Coldharbour Lane will be in addition to its Margaret Street premises, which houses 40 staff.

The Bafta-winning firm is working with network provider Exponential-e and computer technology firm Nvidia on a system to allow work to be shared between sites and with people who work from home, along with cloud-based rendering tools.

“It’s all about being able to work in an adaptable way, which makes it possible to work on these kinds of projects in the UK and compete with places like Canada and Asia,”

Dobree said. “It also means we can have a client-facing facility in central London along with another well-connected site [in Brixton].”

Also speaking at the event, which was supported by Real D, Milk chief executive Will Cohen heralded the animation tax breaks, saying they had revived the film and high-end TV VFX market, which “went off a cliff ” two years ago.

He said: “We are seeing a lot more activity in television commis­ sions and discussions about series leading into 2015, and movie work is apparently looking up as well.”

Speakers call for visual effects to take centre stage Visual effects should be treated as an integral part of the produc­ tion process and not thrown in with post-production, according to speakers at the VFX Summit.

Milk VFX chief executive Will Cohen said that despite the ubiquity of digital effects, there was a “whirlpool of naivety” around the cost and planning required for VFX in television productions. He said: “I am utterly baffled why people don’t plan, prepare and discuss months in advance – especially as there are now tax breaks to capitalise on.”

In his opening address at the Summit, Double Negative cofounder and managing director Alex Hope said the film industry had benefited from better previsualisation tools and closer cooperation with VFX facilities.

He said: “We are now partners in the film-making process in the early stages of the script.

Films like Inception and Gravity, which are wonderful stories, are able to be told thanks to the inventiveness and creativity of the likes of Double Negative and Framestore. That’s what VFX should be in the future. We should be in the vanguard of digital change across the produc­ tion process.”

VFX execs reject union concerns over conditions

BY George Bevir

Senior figures from the VFX sector have dismissed union concerns over working conditions – with the co-founder of The Mill sug­ gesting that disgruntled staff should leave the industry.

Earlier this year, Bectu launched a campaign to address what it described as “deep-rooted con­ cerns over working conditions”.

The trade union carried out a survey, which found “high levels of dissatisfaction” among VFX staff.

Speaking during the Unreality Checked panel of the VFX Summit, The Mill chief creative officer Pat Joseph said that although the www.broadcastnow.co.uk

We don’t make up the schedules... We live in a commercial environment Pat Joseph, The Mill

Joseph: unhappy staff ‘should exit’

nature of the work – particularly commercials – called for long hours, “the pay is fairly good and the work is absolutely fantastic”.

Joseph said: “You will always have disgruntled people who feel

they have to work long hours, but quite honestly, they should get out of it. We don’t make up the schedules and the budgets for the projects. We live within a commer­ cial environment.”

Framestore head of recruitment Amy Smith agreed with Joseph’s suggestion that it was incumbent on facilities to make sure they

provide comfortable working envi­ ronments to prevent staff being poached by rivals – a problem compounded by the shortage of talented British VFX staff.

Smith added that one of the reasons for the skills shortage is that the current educational model isn’t suited to the needs of the industry because it was designed for jobs that existed 10 years ago.

“With digital and online, we’re moving into new markets that require the softer side of things, like entrepreneurship and innova­ tion. [Educational institutions are] training students how to use Maya and Nuke, which is fine, but it’s not enough any more,” she said.

13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 19

In Pictures

Setting the creative agenda Representatives from the television, film and advertising industries gathered in London last week to share inspiration and information in a series of seminars, workshops and forums Event Tweets

Retweeting @conordignam Tweeting about @brucedaisley talking about how twitter is responding to how other media is responding to twitter. @campbellglennie (Campbell Glennie) Director, talent schemes, Edinburgh International TV Festival Everyone claps the showreels here at #CreativeWeekLondon. Next time I’m bringing a showreel…of… some stuff…or something… @nwalley (Nigel Walley) Managing director, Decipher Some great examples of why the UK punches above its weight in the creative industries to be found at #CreativeWeekLondon. Try and get over @UKTICreative UKTI Creative

1

50% of 16-34s registered to 4oD: C4’s Abraham. Good conversation today about convergence of linear TV & digital #CreativeWeekLondon @adrianlast (Adrian Last) ITV Studios marketing director

8

Highlights: Adam Crozier (ITV) Steve Hatch (Facebook) Bruce Daisely (Twitter) David Abraham (C4) & Stuart Murphy (Sky) #CreativeWeekLondon @richarddinnick (Richard Dinnick) Screenwriter The Harry Potter franchise set up the UK’s VFX industry to be a world leader, Josh Berger said today at Media Summit. @iainsmith (Iain Smith) Exec producer, Pinewood Studios

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6

9 7

Really looking forward to hearing @krishgm & others at #diversify #CreativeWeekLondon starting now @Oona_King (Oona King) “Soft skills are vitally important in the VFX client facing positions” Pat Joseph @MillChannel #CreativeWeekLondon @axisVFX Animation studio Axis 20 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

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www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Associate partner

PHOTOGRAPHY BY THEODORE WOOD

Headline partner

Who’s who

In pictures (left to right) 1 Steve Hatch, regional director UK, Facebook; Stella Medlicott, chief marketing officer, Red Bee Media 2 Adam Crozier, chief executive, ITV 3 All3Media, associate sponsor 4 Jennifer Rice, cabin crew, Air New Zealand

2

3

5 James Hilton, co-founder and chief creative officer, AKQA 6 Josh Berger, president and managing director, Warner Bros Entertainment UK, Ireland and Spain 7 Damien Fagon, global head of VFX, MPC Film; Stuart Aitken, creative director, Axis 8 HD Evolved – 4K and Beyond 9 Gil James and Jenny Cooper, Nvizble

4

5

10 David Abraham, chief executive, Channel 4 11 George Bevir, editor, Broadcast TECH; Dave Cadle, owner, Envy Post 12 Bruce Daisley, managing director, Twitter UK 13 Jane Millichip, managing director, Sky Vision; Paul Heaney, managing director, TCB Media Rights; Munia Kanna-Konsek, head of sales, Beyond Distribution; Wayne Davison, commercial director, DRG; Peter White, Broadcast

10

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 21

Comment

I do the projects I want to do, wherever I can make them Melvyn Bragg, Interview, page 26

As Yet Untitled: no prep, no script, no running order and no rules

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22 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

When did TV get so predictable?

Panel shows need to find room for spontaneity, writes Iain Coyle

A

nyone in telly who caught BBC2’s excellent Harry & Paul’s The Story Of The Twos would’ve found themselves awkwardly recognising the clichés and stereotypes in their Panel Show sketch. It’s weird how a strange kind of uniformity has evolved without us really noticing.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not about to start laying into a genre of programming that has informed and entertained a generation. As Jimmy Mulville is very fond of saying, Have I Got News For You is now the number one place where people get their current affairs. It’s served me well as a viewer and certainly serves Dave with a lot of brilliant content.

But what is it that makes the best ones work? Of course, Have I Got News For You has been brilliantly produced and written for its 46 series and QI, a baby in comparison with 11 series, is equally well pitched.

I’d suggest it’s not the format but the chemistry between the main protagonists that makes them fly: Ian & Paul, Stephen & Alan and my current favourite, the ‘Fleabag and Spiffy’ combination of Lee Mack and David Mitchell on Would I Lie to You?.

Even Channel 4, which you could argue hasn’t really cracked the panel show genre, has the threesome of Jimmy Carr, Sean Lock and Jon Richardson, who have further illustrated this point by actually switching formats from 8 Out Of 10 Cats to Countdown. Their relationship is the thing that shines through.

Furthermore, it’s the stuff in between the game, when folk just start riffing, that usually gets the biggest laughs and the most memorable moments.

I once had a conversation with Alan Davies about guesting on a show (which shall remain nameless), on which every moment of spontaneity was either cut out

in the edit or ‘picked up’ again at the end of the show, to the frustration of both guests and studio audience.

We wanted Dave’s new show, As Yet Untitled, which is hosted by Alan, to be the antithesis of this. It’s a panel show without the game. Literally, the comics just turn up and talk. No prep, no script, no running order, no scoring devices, no pick-ups, no rules. All Alan has is a fact or two about his guests and between them, after an hour of roundtable chat, they have to come up with a name for that episode. I guess that’s kind of a format.

The guests love doing it – they find it incredibly freeing and a creative challenge. That may be an astonishingly pretentious way to describe some people just sitting around and talking, but it is a bizarrely brave thing to do.

I’m very grateful that UKTV has taken a gamble on pure improvisation, here and on shows like Ross Noble Freewheeling. With TV becoming more risk averse every quarter, it takes balls to take a punt on something without a safety net.

The good people at Phil McIntyre TV and Grand Scheme have delivered a breadth of guests and an onscreen chemistry that feels fresh and oddly subversive – a different kind of funny.

I’m starting to get used to the unpredictability of this kind of commission. And you know what? Trusting the creativity and passion of comedians rather than stifling them with TV straitjackets seems to be working.

Ahead of the series launch on 16 June, I’ll leave you to ponder why Alan and his guests chose the title Cupped By A Shammy Hand… ➤ Iain Coyle is a commissioning editor at UKTV

‘It’s not the format but the protagonists’ chemistry that makes it fly’

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Low pay is main reason for the lack of diversity in TV Diversity initiatives are all very well, but new entrants need money too

‘Slavery’ is nothing new in TV

H

ave you heard? Racial equality fever has suddenly swept the TV industry as though it were the latest superfood you need to add to your diet. The only problem is, nobody seems to be able to figure out why.

We’ve tried everything: outreach programmes, targeted internships, training programmes and initiatives. All that we’ve achieved is to appease the left-wing guilt and public image of some wishy-washy liberal producers.

None of these hare-brained ideas seems able to stick, no matter how many times we throw them against the wall. Is the industry inherently racist? Perhaps people from a different minority are just not cracked up to work in the TV industry? Or maybe, just maybe, the solution is a lot more simple but nobody wants to say the dirty word: money.

This is not an issue of race.

The industry is lacking white working class people for the exact same reason that it lacks ethnic minorities. Most of these people come from underprivileged backgrounds. Many have parents who have struggled really hard to keep a roof over their head.

Money concerns This is Broadcast not Socialist Worker, so I’ll save my inequality rant for another publication. But how can indies honestly be surprised by the lack of diversity when the only people who can afford to start in TV on the pitiful wages we pay them are those surviving on a loan from the bank of Mummy and Daddy?

I don’t have a chip on my shoulder, by the way; I have a whole sack of potatoes. TV should be a meritocracy in which the people with the best ideas and who work the hardest get to make it. But it’s a plutocracy. With a wealthy enough background, you can slum it for a year or two as a severely underpaid runner or researcher without having to worry whether you’ll www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Ron Prince Founder of specialist post/ VFX marketing firm Prince PR

I Starting out: those from less-well-off families find it harder to break into TV

‘If you want more people from diverse backgrounds in the industry, then pay a living wage’ have enough money at the end of the month to eat.

Let’s look at the maths. Say I work for a decent factual indie in London as a researcher. I make about £1,100 a month, and let’s just delude ourselves for a minute and say I work 9-5. So I’m making just about 50p more than mini­ mum hourly wage. Take out £172 for travel, and the £490 rent for the one-bed flat I share with my mate – that leaves £438 to live on for the rest of the month, including phone bills, electricity, council tax, food and any other essential amenities. (I’ll forgo any sort of social life whatsoever.)

Worst of all, there’s probably more than 100 runners or researchers and production assistants working for much less because money isn’t a concern for them. When ‘Sebastian’ and I are up for the same production assistant job, I have to turn it down because I’m one of those fussy people who likes to earn enough

money to eat. Sebastian is more than happy to work for sweatshop wages because his current account at the bank of Mummy and Daddy comes with an unlimited overdraft.

Meanwhile, I get to attend another seminar where a producer takes to the stage to tell me that the industry has to change, but when asked what can be done, they just shrug their shoulders.

It’s all very simple: if you want more people from diverse backgrounds to work in the industry, regardless of their race or colour, then you need to pay them a living wage.

Right now, there are protests against Tesco, John Lewis and Marks and Spencer for not paying their workers a decent wage. Why shouldn’t production companies be held to the same standard?

I’m not referring to the small indies making two or three one-off shows a year, but the well-established indies, the ones with parent companies, returning formats, residual returns and a £10,000 espresso machine in the kitchen that nobody knows how to use – except for the one runner whose name you keep getting wrong. ➤ The writer of this piece, who wishes to remain anonymous, is just starting out in TV

read Bectu’s survey of runners with some dismay. The comments about ‘slavery’ are not new – it’s been going on for a long, long time.

I started in the industry fresh from university in the mid-1980s, with a running job at a post house in Soho. I can recall working well over 80 hours a week for around £100 (after tax) and gamely stuck at it for six months because this was the industry for me.

Most of the staff were fine but some of the senior heads of department were tyrannical bullies. Their Dickensian behaviour made for a most unhappy early experience.

There was no channel for redress, apart from telling the bully to “f*** off ”, which promptly got me fired.

Some companies are better, more humanitarian, in the way they treat their runners. Moral decency comes from the top down.

My second employer took an interest in me, and what I had to offer.

They gave me a job in their marketing department, and I never looked back after that.

One might have thought that working conditions for young, enthusiastic people wanting to get into the industry might have changed in the past 30 years. But the survey has highlighted that in some quarters, nothing has changed at all. One can only hope that anyone who finds themselves downtrodden has the strength and dignity to stand up and say: “Enough is enough.”

‘Most staff were fine but some of the senior heads of department were tyrannical bullies’ 13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 25

The Broadcast Interview melvyn bragg

Keeping the faith in TV The South Bank Show presenter talks to Robin Parker about revisiting his TV past, the freedom offered by Sky Arts – and the importance of broadcasters covering religion

W

hen meeting a polymath like Melvyn Bragg, one goes in expecting a digres­ sive intellectual sprint through an esoteric mixture of subjects. But today, religion is weighing heavily on his mind and it will dominate our con­ versation, complete with a deep and lengthy lesson on its role in society.

Bragg is fresh from accepting a special award from the Sandford St Martin Trust for his personal contribution to broadcasting about religion, ethics and spirituality. His body of work runs from screenwriting duties on the Jesus Christ Superstar movie 40 years ago to his BBC docu­ mentaries The King James Bible: The Book That Changed The World and The Most Dangerous Man In Tudor England, which explored William Tyndale’s mission to translate the Bible into English.

The day after the awards, he’s mulling over the consensus at the cer­ emony that there is not enough reli­ gious output on TV and radio today.

The volume is not a concern, he coun­ ters, nor is the quality – he praises one award-winner, Radio Scotland’s Martin Luther King documentary I Have A Dream as “an inventive, powerful piece of historic polemic”.

“There’s a feeling of defeatism about religion in broadcasting but that does it down,” he says, noting that when given a chance, an audience will come to a tough subject. “My Tyndale documentary beat BBC1 in a 9pm slot on BBC2 and it was about a virtually unknown person.”

The resigned mood among pro­ gramme-makers at the event was, he says, down to a more pervasive antireligious sensibility in TV that is out of step with the public. Bragg was raised Christian and moved away from reli­ gion as an adult; nevertheless, he sees it as a tribal thing, with a fundamental influence on society. He raises the prospect of an unmissable-sounding on-stage battle he has coming up with Richard Dawkins on that very point.

Notions of religion and the estab­ lishment mean that coverage tends to 26 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

people with great programming flair who aren’t engaging with the subject.

“What they don’t get is that religion is as powerful in the world as it’s ever been. It’s a massive part of our country and we turn our back on it. There is such a lazy anti-religion feeling around that with one swipe of the hand, a lot of skittles are knocked down.”

Giving faith its due

fall on the BBC’s shoulders, he says, leaving others to absolve themselves of responsibility, outside of the occa­ sional counter-voice such as Channel 4’s Ramadan season or investigations into corrupt practices.

“I do think that ITV and C4 – which has had no dedicated religious com­ missioning editor since Aaqil Ahmed moved to the BBC – could do a great deal more,” he says. “It’s been left to the BBC, which is regrettable because a lot of people don’t watch or listen to the BBC much and there’s a tranche of

The Most Dangerous Man In Tudor England: Bragg’s BBC2 doc beat BBC1 in a 9pm slot

The balance between dedicated reli­ gious slots and broader shows that touch on moral and ethical themes has long been a difficult one to strike for public service broadcasters mandated to give faith issues their due. The result, he says, has been a false hier­ archy of programming genres.

“Once a programme is labelled as ‘religious’, there seems to be a down­ grading of it as something that’s for a particular audience, when the starting point should be that it’s simply a good programme,” he maintains.

Bragg notes that just as The South Bank Show launched with a mission to break down barriers between ‘high’ and ‘low’ culture, so has his deter­ minedly high-brow weekly Radio 4 show In Our Time deliberately put religion on an equal footing with phi­ losophy, history, science and culture.

Broadcasters owe it to honour the

MELVYN BRAGG ON… Diversity “Going through the back list of South Bank Shows, I’ve been appalled by how many men we featured compared with women.

But those were the times: if you featured a film director, chances were it would have been a man.

We’ve been behind the curve but we’re going in the right direction.

“With ethnic minorities, it’s a fine line. We’ve done a lot [including singer Angel Blue] but you don’t sit down and say you will do x number. Maybe we should – it goes through our minds.”

the other month, at the fag end of its lease. It’s a hard time for indies, particularly if they’re specialist – they have to wait months for a green light and then see their budget chipped away, while the big indies get bigger.”

Phil Edgar-Jones Angel Blue: upcoming SBS film

Small indies “We started up Directors’ Cut Productions from nothing two years ago. We only got our office

“Sky Arts’ former controller James Hunt could not have recommended Phil more highly. I know his background and he gets it. We’re already talking to him about a couple more ideas around the South Bank Show.”

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

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“extraordinary impulses” of looking for meaning in life that have driven history and still have an impact on current affairs, he says.

“We had a huge response when we focused on the Holy Trinity in In Our Time,” he recalls. “Our great bodies of knowledge were produced by people every bit as clever as us who explained the world using religion for centuries.

They made us who we are. So when someone like Dawkins says religion is silly, that’s fascinating to me.”

An early riser, Bragg is a regular lis­ tener to Radio 4’s 7am religious show www.broadcastnow.co.uk

‘When someone like Richard Dawkins says religion is silly, that’s fascinating to me’

Sunday and has no time for those calling for the station’s weekday Thought For The Day to be chopped.

“To give religion two minutes a day, in its own space, isn’t exactly selling general morality or atheism short,” he scoffs. “Quite a few of the essays these days don’t get to God until the last para­ graph anyway. It’s fine, it’s a reminder of the issues we all think about.”

Bragg’s next BBC project – he actu­ ally delivered it in September, but it was formally announced as part of Tony Hall’s arts push and will air later this year – uses history, philosophy

and religion to tell a story about a period of history that holds particular fascination for him.

BBC2 series Melvyn Bragg’s Radical Lives will look at the political influence of The Rights Of Man writer Thomas Paine and cleric John Ball. The latter is the intellectual inspiration for the Peasants’ Revolt, which Bragg has touched on previously in both In Our Time and a novel he is working on (indeed, research for the novel spawned the programme).

Of these familiar subjects, he laughs: “It’s almost an admission ➤ 13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 27

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The Broadcast Interview

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Melvyn Bragg

Clockwise from left: Blackadder producer John Lloyd with Melvyn Bragg; Bragg with artist Tracey Emin in 2001; South Bank Show opening sequence

of either doggedness or a lack of imagin­ation. I do the projects I want to do, wherever I can make them.”

Right now, much of his time is spent with Sky, which has taken owner­ship of the South Bank Show name and spun it out into new areas.

Its current run opened with a piece on Blackadder and QI producer John Lloyd. Bragg cites this as another example of his meritocratic approach to his subjects. “TV production is an art form in its own right and John is one of the best producers of the past 40 years,” he reasons.

Sky has no requirement for religious themes, but he says his choice of subjects is as free as he’s enjoyed anywhere else. “They’ve let me take on some of the toughest of subjects, such as the language of King Lear,” he notes. “Sky’s people back you, they make fast decisions and they like what we do. Sometimes, just one of those is enough; they offer all three.”

He’s become used to batting away questions about small audiences on Sky Arts, arguing that many people are missing the bigger picture.

“The BBC hierarchy who sneer about its figures forget that when BBC2 started, it didn’t have an audience either, and nor did C4,” he says. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

“Sky Arts is getting the kind of audiences now that it took BBC4 nine years to get.

“Sky is gambling that people will pay for culture. If someone had said to me 30 years ago that I’d pay to watch football on TV, or even pay to watch an opera relay from New York in the cinema, I wouldn’t have believed them.”

He has observed an increasing general public appetite for ideas, born of an increasingly universityeducated audience, and points to the Hay Festival as an example of the way vast numbers of people will pay to be stimulated by intellectual content.

The on-demand age This grab-bag of content to choose from will, he predicts, continue to put pressure on the BBC to justify itself.

“The BBC is immeasurably worth the licence fee but the idea of subscriptions has crept in,” he notes.

Above all else though, his eye is on creating a permanent record. “The programmes remain,” he says baldly of today’s on-demand age. “They’re out there in the same way as books are – you just pull them down from the sky.”

Bragg has been casting an eye over his own permanent record of late as he dips into the archive for the first tranche

‘Sky Arts is getting the kind of audiences now that it took BBC4 nine years to get’

of South Bank Show Originals. Over five years, he’s revisiting 150 episodes from the former ITV arts strand’s archive and taking a fresh perspective.

Half of each 30-minute programme will be drawn directly from the original, with new commentary from Bragg and interviews with third parties – not necessarily those featured in the first edition – making up the rest.

Viewers will see Germaine Greer contextualise Tracey Emin’s contribution in the 13 years since her profile, while a look back at the very first episode has crystallised Bragg’s feelings about the series as a whole.

When The South Bank Show launched with Paul McCartney in 1978, Bragg recalls his ambition was to represent the arts as he experienced them. “This was my chance to take the best of pop music and put it on the same level as opera and classical,” he reflects. “It was ‘fuck ’em! I’m gonna do it.’”

Critics were confounded but one who got it was Clive James. He appears in the updated doc, late in life and ill of health, recalling both McCartney’s music and persona in the late 1970s and the emergence of this low/high-culture hybrid. “It’s like starting again,” smiles Bragg. “I’m ridiculously proud.”

13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 29

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Behind the Scenes get stuffed!

Magnificent men and furry flying machines Alongside the bizarre footage of flying cats, sharks and ostriches, it was important that we didn’t lose sight of the human story, says Matt Rudge Matt Rudge Writer/producer/ director

subsequently captured moments of pure slapstick. When they are juxtaposed, we react quite viscerally, but essentially that is what good drama is about. It comes down to timing, and allowing moments to breathe.

The challenge

The budget

I set myself a big challenge: to make a documentary that, while featuring the visually jaw-dropping world of stuffed animals and the extreme creations people make with them, avoided falling into the trap of just being shocking. I wanted it to have depth, to have themes that surprised viewers, and to perhaps take them into more complex areas than they would expect.

Don’t get me wrong, the documentary was always going to feature bizarre and ridiculous creations such as freeze-dried dogs, flying deceased ostriches and leather-clad rats, but it couldn’t just be that.

I wanted to see if among all this I could capture genuine human emotion, jeopardy and real narratives.

I wanted stories to unfold rather than a film that just pointed and stared. If people were tuning in to see a flying cat, could we also subtly invite them to mull over some bigger questions about mortality and our relationship with nature?

Finding the right balance was always going to be tough. When you mix humour and oddity with serious themes and events in people’s lives, you have to get it right or it feels cheap. In life, tragedy and comedy go hand in hand, and this film is no different. I have been with bereaved pet owners in mourning, then

My big question was whether to spend a large part of the budget on travelling to see the extraordinary characters and stories we’d found in far-flung places such as the deep south of the US, or stay closer to home and spend that money on the style of how the doc was filmed.

Less travel would mean a more experimental shooting style with state-of-the-art cameras. We toyed with different ways of filming, such as using a ‘scalpel camera’ (filmed from the POV of a scalpel when someone is creating taxidermy) or positioning small rigs above taxidermists’ tables, to create sequences reminiscent of the BBC drama Silent Witness. The flip side of this unique visual style would be less stories, less production time, and a lot less travel.

But the reason for making this documentary was that taxidermy is undergoing a global revival. It’s probably never been so popular.

We couldn’t have reflected that if we had merely featured one person in London. I didn’t want it to be style over substance; I wanted it to be character-led, with people’s stories taking the viewer through the hour.

So it ended up being entirely self-shot – the same way I shot my previous films House Of Surrogates and The Celeb Hunter: 2 Chairs, 1 Chat

32 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

‘The doc was always going to feature freeze-dried dogs, flying deceased ostriches and leather-clad rats, but it couldn’t just be that’ Matt Rudge

– and we travelled several times to Europe and the US, as well as across the UK. It was the right choice. We found a contributor in the Netherlands who had turned his dead cat into a radio-controlled helicopter. To follow him over a longer period of time as he created his next taxidermy project, we forwent the idea of using an expensive gyrocopter with HD camera flying alongside. It would have looked great, but for a few seconds of shots in an hour-long documentary, it would have meant losing the longer story. We wouldn’t have been able to afford the constant travelling back and forth to the Netherlands, and would have wound up with a much weaker narrative.

In the end, I got the best of both worlds by inventing my own bit of kit: a self-built Go Pro Arm, made from a piece of clear Perspex with 7mm holes drilled along each side. It was attached to the underside of the cat with cable ties through the holes and the Go Pro went on the end via a bolted mount. It only cost me around £20 to make. While it’s not a gyro­ copter manned by a hired-in specialist, it does the trick and allowed me to spend money elsewhere while still creating an amazing shot from a fantastic POV. www.broadcastnow.co.uk

For all the latest breaking news, updated daily, visit www.broadcastnow.co.uk

get stuffed!

Production company Mentorn Media TX TBC, Summer, Channel 4 Commissioner Emma Cooper Writer/producer/director Matt Rudge Executive producer Tayte Simpson Post-production Tangram; Evolutions Summary With taxidermy enjoying a revival, this documentary explores the people creating it, the customers buying it and the dealers making a living from the dead.

Matt Rudge My tricks of the trade n If a contributor enjoys being with

the contributors Our hunt for contributors was difficult at first. Members of the taxidermy community can be cautious, media-shy and protective. They see no benefit in letting cameras into their lives.

Many worried about opening up their world to the public who, in the words of one: “Never have, and never will, understand what we do.” They also worried about animal activists who would misunderstand where the animals came from (generally they are road kill, or died of natural causes, rather than being hunted).

Early research took place around the time of the Benefits Street contro-

Clockwise from left: flying cat creator Bart Jensen with pilot Arjen Beltman; flying rat; Matt Rudge with his DIY Go Pro Arm; Rudge in front of the flying ostrich with his Sony PMW-200

versy, and it was a big reference for many of the people we spoke to.

I decided to meet as many potential contributors as pos­sible without cameras. Over a cup of tea, I explained that I was just interested in finding out more about the art and the process of taxidermy. They would often relax and agree to meet up. Even if they weren’t interested, they would suggest other people.

Before long, everyone in the taxidermy world knew about the project.

But more than that, they knew people who had met me and would vouch for me, or at least say I wasn’t a total idiot.

Doors slowly started opening and I was eventually introduced to some great characters who said they would be interested in being filmed.

the kit

you, it shows on screen. You get so much more from the relationship if they trust you enough to open up and give you their opinions, or keep you informed of events coming up that you might want to film. n Keep a critical distance. In a polite way, challenge contributors with your questioning. Play devil’s advocate and tell them why other people would disagree with them. It can help them explain their own point of view in more depth, or create good moments or reactions. n Have a small overnight bag ready at all times. I’ve got one on permanent standby with everything I need to survive for up to two weeks. The time you spend having to pack in an emergency when something in a contributors’ life is suddenly happening is time not spent filming or travelling to see them. n Learn to laugh at yourself and enjoy the chase. You have to roll with the punches on an observational documentary. Stories stutter and plans fall apart. Contributors might let you down. Relish the chance to be creative in how you react and make the film work regardless. n If you are caught speeding in Holland, do not try to explain to the policeman that you were rushing to see the launch of a radio-controlled flying shark (below).

To keep the personal touch, I self-shot with the Sony PMW-200. It’s lightweight, relatively easy to use and great in low light – I can see the contributor when I’m talking to them so I retain eye contact. I mixed it up with a few C300s and Go Pros strapped to flying cats, ostriches and sharks. They even survived a few high-speed air crashes, though I never told the production manager about those… www.broadcastnow.co.uk

13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 33

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34 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Appointments

To advertise here, contact Paul Martin on 020 3033 4238 email paul.martin@broadcastnow.co.uk

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13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 35

Ratings Mon 2 June – Sun 8 June

Cats win as babies lose out ITV’s Secret Life of Cats narrowly beats BBC1’s Crimewatch but Babies episode falls to Happy Valley

BY Stephen Price

Hello, schedule fans. This week was the final week of a normal (-ish) schedule before the Brazilian shindig gets going. BBC1’s dramas ended, while ITV produced a veritable confetti of singles. In a bumper, event-strewn weekend, opera boy band Collabro won the right to follow previous Britain’s Got Talent winners to bemuse the Queen in December.

A Florida storm interrupted the football and the danger of showing two live but unrelated sporting events back-to-back became apparent. Then there was BBC1’s coverage from Montreal of perhaps the prettiest Grand Prix circuit. In the coming month, you’ll be wallowing helplessly in football hyperbole while somehow squeezing in some creamy SW19 strawberries.

On Monday, ITV’s single doc Secret Life Of Cats (3.6 million/ 15%; 275,000 +1) needed the help of ITV+1 to inch ahead of BBC1’s Crimewatch (3.6 million/16%).

On Tuesday at 8pm, BBC1’s Holby City (4.1 million/20%) beat ITV’s Quads: Our First Year (2.9 million/14%; 240,000 +1). At 9pm, the finale of BBC1’s drama Happy Valley achieved 6.2 million/28%, second best for the series in volume behind the launch episode’s 6.3 million/27%, with binge viewers now up to speed with the weekly watchers. It easily defeated ITV’s Secret Life Of Babies’ 2.6 million/12% (340,000 +1).

On Wednesday, England V Ecuador, the penultimate World Cup warm-up game, averaged 6.4 million/29% (90,000 +1) from 36 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

Broadcast/Barb Top 100 network programmes 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 30 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 38 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 47 49 50

Title

Day

Start

Viewers (m) (all homes)

Share %

Broadcaster/ Producer*

Britain’s Got Talent: Live Final Coronation Street Coronation Street EastEnders Coronation Street Coronation Street Coronation Street Coronation Street Int’ Football: England V Ecuador Emmerdale Happy Valley EastEnders Emmerdale Emmerdale Emmerdale EastEnders Int’ Football: England V Honduras Emmerdale EastEnders BBC News At Ten Formula 1: The Canadian Grand Prix BBC News At Ten BBC News At Ten BBC News At Six BBC News At Six BBC News At Six BBC News At Six Holby City Soccer Aid 2014 BBC News At Six BBC News BBC News At Ten Secret Life Of Cats The One Show ITV News & Weather Crimewatch The One Show The One Show Casualty BBC News At Ten The One Show BBC News Watchdog ITV News & Weather ITV News & Weather From There To Here Quirke Quads: Our First Year Farewell Tina The Graham Norton Show

Sat Mon Mon Mon Wed Thu Fri Fri Wed Mon Tue Thu Thu Tue Thu Fri Sat Fri Tue Mon Sun Tue Wed Wed Tue Mon Fri Tue Sun Thu Sun Thu Mon Mon Sun Mon Wed Tue Sat Fri Thu Sat Wed Wed Mon Thu Sun Tue Fri Fri

19.00 19.30 20.30 20.00 19.00 20.30 19.30 20.30 19.30 19.00 21.00 19.30 20.00 19.00 19.00 20.00 21.30 19.00 19.30 22.00 18.20 22.00 22.00 18.00 18.00 18.00 18.30 20.00 18.00 18.00 18.00 22.00 21.00 19.00 22.00 21.00 19.00 19.00 21.20 22.00 19.00 22.10 20.00 18.30 18.30 21.00 21.00 20.00 20.00 22.40

10.73 8.40 8.14 7.37 7.27 7.14 6.85 6.63 6.44 6.33 6.18 6.01 5.93 5.92 5.56 5.48 5.15 5.10 4.92 4.86 4.59 4.50 4.46 4.33 4.32 4.21 4.19 4.11 4.08 4.05 4.05 3.97 3.83 3.69 3.68 3.61 3.58 3.55 3.55 3.52 3.47 3.39 3.36 3.34 3.21 3.18 3.16 3.16 3.14 3.11

50.80 40.03 35.35 34.75 36.93 33.71 38.74 33.36 29.57 33.05 28.00 32.47 30.16 30.06 32.41 29.49 35.96 31.54 23.66 26.47 23.28 25.43 24.79 26.79 28.82 26.76 29.49 20.01 20.42 28.24 26.91 21.97 16.68 19.27 19.80 15.72 18.46 19.13 16.38 19.48 20.25 17.11 15.17 19.12 18.93 15.23 15.18 15.37 16.89 22.99

ITV/Syco/Thames ITV ITV BBC1 ITV ITV ITV ITV ITV ITV BBC1/Red Production Company BBC1 ITV ITV ITV BBC1 ITV ITV BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 ITV BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 ITV/Oxford Scientific Films BBC1 ITV BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 ITV ITV BBC1/Kudos Film & TV BBC1 ITV/Shine TV ITV/Shiver BBC1/So Television

Figures include HD and +1 where applicable

Secret Life Of Cats

Quads: Our First Year www.broadcastnow.co.uk

All BARB ratings supplied by: Attentional

Source: BARB

51 52 53 53 55 55 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 63 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 93 93 96 97 97 99 100

Title

Day

Start

Viewers (m) (all homes)

Share %

Broadcaster/ Producer*

ITV News & Weather Mrs Brown’s Boys World War I At Home Tonight: The Diabetes Epidemic Crimewatch Update Pointless ITV News & Weather Secret Life Of Babies New You’ve Been Framed!

Pointless Pointless Gino’s Italian Escape A Very British Airline Pointless Pointless Celebrities ITV News & Weather The National Lottery: In It To Win It The One Show Del Boys And Dealers BBC News At One Inspector George Gently BBC News At One BBC News At One BBC News At One BBC News Springwatch 2014 Panorama – Savile: The Power To Abuse F1: Canadian Grand Prix – Qualifying Countryfile The Chase Question Time ITV News At Ten & Weather A Question Of Sport Food Inspectors BBC News Pointless Springwatch 2014 The Island With Bear Grylls The Chase Brazil: In The Shadow Of The Stadiums Springwatch 2014 Big Brother: Power Trip: Live Launch ITV News & Weather 24 Hours In A&E The Chase The Chase 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown Gardeners’ World Antiques Road Trip Bargain Hunt

Tue Sat Mon Thu Mon Wed Thu Tue Sat Mon Tue Mon Mon Thu Sat Fri Sat Fri Wed Thu Fri Wed Tue Mon Sun Mon Mon Sat Sun Wed Thu Mon Tue Thu Sat Fri Tue Mon Thu Wed Thu Thu Wed Wed Tue Mon Fri Fri Wed Wed

18.30 22.30 19.30 19.30 22.35 17.15 18.30 21.00 18.30 17.15 17.15 20.00 21.00 17.15 19.40 18.30 20.30 19.30 21.00 13.00 20.30 13.00 13.00 13.00 22.30 20.00 20.30 17.00 17.00 17.00 22.35 22.00 22.35 20.00 19.20 17.15 20.00 21.00 17.00 22.35 20.00 21.00 22.10 21.00 17.00 17.00 21.00 21.00 16.30 12.15

3.10 2.96 2.95 2.95 2.93 2.93 2.92 2.90 2.86 2.85 2.83 2.80 2.75 2.75 2.74 2.73 2.69 2.68 2.67 2.62 2.59 2.56 2.53 2.52 2.51 2.46 2.45 2.43 2.41 2.40 2.39 2.37 2.35 2.29 2.26 2.22 2.20 2.16 2.14 2.13 2.11 2.09 2.05 2.05 2.05 2.03 1.97 1.97 1.94 1.93

18.87 16.91 14.08 15.95 19.76 22.11 18.60 13.14 17.86 22.24 23.46 13.21 12.00 23.32 13.08 19.21 12.10 15.15 11.53 41.25 13.20 37.29 40.47 36.81 16.93 11.12 10.65 16.58 17.81 18.99 19.79 13.34 17.97 11.20 11.56 20.39 10.69 9.40 19.02 17.61 10.33 10.62 12.93 8.85 17.65 16.51 10.07 10.07 19.70 30.83

ITV BBC1/Boc-Pix/?RTÉ BBC1 ITV BBC1 BBC1/Remarkable Television ITV ITV/Oxford Scientific Films ITV BBC1/Remarkable Television BBC1/Remarkable Television ITV BBC2/Lion Television BBC1/Remarkable Television BBC1/Remarkable Television ITV BBC1/12 Yard Productions BBC1 BBC1/RDF Television BBC1 BBC1/Company Pictures BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC2 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 ITV BBC1/Mentorn ITV BBC1 BBC1/Betty TV BBC1 BBC2/Remarkable Television BBC2 C4/Shine TV/Bear Grylls Ventures ITV BBC1 BBC2 C5/Initial ITV C4/The Garden ITV ITV C4/Zeppotron BBC2 BBC1/STV Productions BBC1

*To include producer credits email robin.parker@emap.com by noon on Tuesday. Tables exclude programmes timed under 5 minutes long and omnibus editions, eg soaps.

A Very British Airline www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Big Brother

7.30pm, peaking at 8.3 million/35% at 9.35pm. Opposite, BBC1’s Watchdog (3.4 million/15%) was followed by Del Boys And Dealers at 9pm (2.7 million/12%).

At 9pm on Thursday, BBC1’s three-part drama From There To Here ended on 3.2 million/15%, 1.3 million behind the launch episode’s 4.5 million/22%. Next came Channel 5’s Big Brother Launch on 2 million/10% (115,000 +1) for 90 minutes, level with 2013’s summer edition launch. Channel 4’s Comedy Gala averaged 1.6 million/10% (160,000 +1) for nearly three hours and 1.8 million/9% for the core 9-10pm hour. ITV, which

‘BBC1’s three-part drama Quirke ended on a series low of 3.2 million’ for some reason played Life Of Ryan: Caretaker Manager, drew 1.7 million/8% (125,000 +1).

If Thursday at 9pm was painful for ITV, Friday was slightly worse: Soccer Aid 2014 – The Countdown came in fifth on just 1.4 million/7% (130,000 +1). BBC1’s repeat of Inspector George Gently won with a slim 2.6 million/13% from 8.30pm, while BBC2’s Gardener’s World achieved 2 million/10% for half an hour, level with C4’s 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown (1.6 million/8%; 330,000 +1). C5’s Big Brother averaged 1.6 million/8% (80,000 +1) for 90 minutes.

Saturday was much brighter for ITV with a dominant line-up.

The final of Britain’s Got Talent achieved 10.3 million/49% (480,000 +1) from 7pm to 9.30pm, just 300,000 short of last year with the same share. The storm-interrupted England V Honduras match, complete with hasty improvising from Chiles and co, averaged 5.2 million/36% (76,000 +1) from 9.30pm. BBC1’s best was Casualty’s 3.6 million/16% at 9.15pm.

On Sunday, ITV’s Soccer Aid proper reached 4 million/20% (138,000 +1) from 6pm to 10pm.

Opposite, BBC1’s coverage of the Canadian Grand Prix averaged 4.6 million/23% from 6.30pm to 9pm. BBC1’s three-part drama Quirke ended on a series low of 3.2 million/15% at 9pm.

See over for digital focus, plus channel and genre overviews 13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 37

Ratings Mon 2 June – Sun 8 June Channel Overview

BBC2’s BA doc takes off

BY Stephen Price

The first time I went abroad, on Iberia Airlines, we had metal cutlery. My mum made it quite clear it was scheduled flights and proper knives and forks for us; none of your chartered tat. These days, security doesn’t even allow a bottle of pre-bought water on board, let alone a metal knife. The glamour of air travel might be extinguished but BBC2 found more mileage in it. Elsewhere, the boys left the island tanned, skinny and delighted by a flushing loo.

BBC2’s best Springwatch this week was Monday at 8pm with 2.5 million/11%, well ahead of C4’s Dispatches (800,000/4%; 27,000 +1), Jamie’s Money Saving Meals (1 million/4%; 75,000 +1) and Channel 5’s DIY Dummies (600,000/3%; 20,000 +1).

At 9pm on Monday, BBC2’s British Airways series A Very British Airline launched with a table-topping 2.8 million/12%, beating the finale of C4’s The Island With Bear Grylls’ 1.9 million/8% (267,000 +1). C5’s Illegal Immigrant & Proud languished on 1 million/4% (73,000 +1).

At 8pm on Friday, BBC2’s D-Day 70 – The Heroes Return: Highlights averaged 1.6 million/8%, ahead of C4’s Celebrity Fifteen To One (1.1 million/6%; 200,000 +1) and C5’s Eddie Stobart’s Excellent Adventures (400,000/ 2%; 37,000 +1).

Source: BARB

WEEK 23 Average hours per viewer Daytime Share (%) Peaktime Share (%) w/c 02.06.14 Peaktime share (%) w/c 03.06.13 Year to date Average hours per viewer Audience share (%) Audience share (2013)

BBC1 4.71 19.44 19.57 20.20 BBC1 5.69 21.65 21.11

BBC2 1.32 4.67 7.12 7.61 BBC2 1.68 6.37 5.60

ITV1 4.13 12.56 23.71 22.05 ITV1 4.09 15.56 16.45

C4 1.31 5.57 5.78 6.10 C4 1.51 5.75 5.92

38 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

Total 23.67 100.00 100.00 100.00 Total 26.29 100.00 100.00

Start

Viewers (m) (all homes)

Share %

Broadcaster

Top 30 bbc2, channel 4 and channel 5 Title

Day

1

A Very British Airline

Mon

21.00

2.75

12.00

BBC2

2

Springwatch 2014

Mon

20.00

2.46

11.12

BBC2

3

Pointless

Fri

17.15

2.22

20.39

BBC2

4

Springwatch 2014

Tue

20.00

2.20

10.69

BBC2

5

The Island With Bear Grylls

Mon

21.00

2.16

9.40

6

Springwatch 2014

Thu

20.00

2.11

10.33

C4 BBC2

7

Big Brother: Power Trip: Live Launch

Thu

21.00

2.09

10.62

C5

8

24 Hours In A&E

Wed

21.00

2.05

8.85

C4

9

8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown

Fri

21.00

1.97

10.07

C4

9

Gardeners’ World

Fri

21.00

1.97

10.07

BBC2

11

Springwatch 2014

Wed

20.00

1.93

8.63

BBC2

12

Great British Menu

Mon

19.00

1.84

9.17

BBC2

13

Great British Menu

Tue

19.00

1.79

9.07

BBC2

14

Channel 4’s Comedy Gala

Thu

21.00

1.76

10.70

15

Great British Menu

Thu

19.00

1.74

9.76

BBC2

16

Dirty Dancing

Sun

18.55

1.62

7.88

C5

C4

17

Big Brother: Power Trip: Live Launch

Fri

21.00

1.61

8.47

C5

18

George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces

Thu

20.00

1.59

7.76

C4

19

D-Day 70 – The Heroes Return: Highlights

Fri

20.00

1.57

8.17

BBC2

19

Great British Menu

Wed

19.00

1.57

8.08

BBC2

21

Coast Australia

Wed

21.10

1.54

6.66

BBC2

22

Location, Location, Location

Tue

20.00

1.48

7.21

C4

23

Normandy ’44: The Battle Beyond D-Day

Fri

21.30

1.44

7.62

BBC2

24

Big Brother: Power Trip

Sun

21.00

1.43

6.41

C5

24

Great British Menu

Fri

19.00

1.43

8.42

BBC2

26

Eggheads

Fri

18.00

1.40

10.79

BBC2

27

Bear Grylls: Surviving The Island

Mon

22.00

1.37

8.19

C4

27

QI XL

Sun

22.00

1.37

8.10

BBC2

29

Flog It!

Sat

18.05

1.33

8.60

BBC2

29

Celebrity Fifteen To One

Fri

20.00

1.33

6.91

C4

Figures include HD and +1 where applicable

Multichannel 39.75

Audience for D-Day 70 – The Last Heroes Return: Highlights on BBC2 (Friday, 8pm)

Others 11.25 53.43 39.75 39.88 Others 12.29 46.75 46.91

Daytime is 09.30-18.00. Peaktime is 18.00-22.30. Figures include HD and +1 where applicable

daytime share (%) w/c 02.06.14

peaktime share (%) w/c 02.06.14

1.6m

C5 0.95 4.32 4.06 4.16 C5 1.03 3.92 4.01

BBC1 19.57

ITV 23.71

C5 4.06 C4 5.78

BBC2 7.12

Multichannel 53.43

700k Opposite the football, Mary’s Silver Service underperformed for Channel 4 (Wednesday, 8pm)

BBC1 19.44

ITV 12.56

C5 4.32

BBC2 4.67

C4 5.57

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

All BARB ratings supplied by: Attentional

Genre Overview

Source: BARB

Top 10 children’s programmes Title

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Old Jack’s Boat Mike The Knight Topsy And Tim The Next Step Mike The Knight Topsy And Tim Everything's Rosie Mike The Knight Topsy And Tim Mike The Knight

Top 10 Factual programmes

Day

Start

Viewers (Age 4-15)

Share (%)

Channel

Thu Thu Wed Mon Wed Fri Wed Fri Thu Mon

17.45 17.30 17.20 17.00 17.30 17.20 08.05 17.30 17.20 17.30

196,100 192,000 190,900 181,900 180,700 179,300 171,100 163,400 159,300 156,500

17.72 17.38 14.98 15.46 13.61 16.53 14.27 14.00 14.00 12.33

CBeebies CBeebies CBeebies CBBC CBeebies CBeebies CBeebies CBeebies CBeebies CBeebies

Happy Valley

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Happy Valley Holby City Casualty From There To Here Quirke Inspector George Gently Midsomer Murders Fargo CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Lewis

UP Happy Valley gains 840,000

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Mrs Brown’s Boys Channel 4’s Comedy Gala The Big Bang Theory Live At The Apollo Benidorm The Simpsons The Simpsons Uncle The Simpsons The Simpsons

Start

Viewers (millions)

Share (%)

Channel

Tue Tue Sat Thu Sun Fri Sun Sun Tue Wed

21.00 20.00 21.20 21.00 21.00 20.30 20.00 21.00 21.00 20.00

6.18 4.11 3.55 3.18 3.16 2.59 1.28 1.25 1.15 1.02

28.00 20.01 16.38 15.23 15.18 13.20 5.78 5.67 5.22 4.48

BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 ITV3 CH4 C5 ITV3

DOWN Quirke sheds 530,000

Start

Viewers (millions)

Share (%)

Channel

Mon Mon Wed Tue Thu Wed Tue Fri Mon Tue

21.00 19.00 19.00 19.00 19.00 20.00 20.00 20.00 19.30 21.00

3.83 3.69 3.58 3.55 3.47 3.36 3.16 3.14 2.95 2.90

16.68 19.27 18.46 19.13 20.25 15.17 15.37 16.89 14.08 13.14

ITV BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 ITV ITV BBC1 ITV

Channel 4’s Comedy Gala

Title

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Britain’s Got Talent: Live Final The Graham Norton Show Pointless New You’ve Been Framed!

Pointless Pointless Pointless Pointless Celebrities National Lottery: In It To Win It The Chase

DOWN Watchdog drops 50,000

UP BGT adds 3 million for Saturday final

UP From There To Here up 760,000

Day

Start

Viewers (millions)

Share (%)

Channel

Sat Fri Wed Sat Mon Tue Thu Sat Sat Wed

19.00 22.40 17.15 18.30 17.15 17.15 17.15 19.40 20.30 17.00

10.73 3.11 2.93 2.86 2.85 2.83 2.75 2.74 2.69 2.40

50.80 22.99 22.11 17.86 22.24 23.46 23.32 13.08 12.10 18.99

ITV BBC1 BBC1 ITV BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 BBC1 ITV

DOWN Casualty loses 720,000

UP Holby City gains 550,000

Top 10 Music & Arts programmes

Day

Start

Viewers (millions)

Share (%)

Channel

Sat Thu Thu Sat Mon Mon Wed Fri Tue Thu

22.30 21.00 20.00 23.00 22.35 18.00 18.00 23.25 18.00 18.00

2.96 1.76 1.61 1.38 1.24 1.21 1.11 1.09 1.06 1.02

16.91 10.70 8.18 9.69 11.06 7.69 6.84 11.86 7.10 7.11

BBC1 C4 E4 BBC1 ITV C4 C4 BBC1 C4 C4

next week Sport and Current Affairs www.broadcastnow.co.uk

Secret Life Of Cats The One Show The One Show The One Show The One Show Watchdog Quads: Our First Year Farewell Tina World War I At Home Secret Life Of Babies

Day

Top 10 Entertainment programmes

Day

Top 10 comedy programmes Title

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Old Jack’s Boat

Top 10 Drama programmes Title

Title

Title

1 2 3 4 5 6 6 8 9 10

Summer Exhibition: BBC Arts...

TOTP 2: Duran Duran Special Random Acts TOTP2 Wham Special Culture Show: Edward St Aubyn...

Singer-Songwriters At The BBC You've Got A Friend: Carole King...

Top Of The Pops: 1979 John Ogdon: Living With Genius Top Of The Pops: 1979

Day

Start

Viewers (millions)

Share (%)

Channel

Sat Sat Fri Sat Mon Fri Fri Thu Fri Sat

19.00 23.00 19.55 23.30 22.00 22.00 21.00 19.30 19.30 23.55

0.60 0.45 0.40 0.37 0.36 0.31 0.31 0.23 0.17 0.15

3.04 3.18 2.15 3.17 2.01 1.85 1.59 1.25 0.92 1.73

BBC2 BBC2 C4 BBC2 BBC2 BBC4 BBC4 BBC4 BBC4 BBC4

See over for demographic and digital focus 13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 39

Ratings Mon 2 June – Sun 8 June Demographic Focus Channels

Individuals Share (%)

Adults ABC1 Share (%)1

BBC1

20.18

ITV

17.73

Source: BARB Adults ABC1 Profile (%)2

Adults 16-34 Share (%)1

23.54

47.35

10.76

17.14

39.23

17.28

Adults 16-34 Profile (%)2

Male Share (%)1

Male Profile (%)2

Female Share (%)1

Female Profile (%)2

9.51

20.37

46.24

20.01

53.76

17.36

16.00

41.34

19.19

58.66

BBC2

5.56

7.02

51.27

3.09

9.90

5.84

48.17

5.32

51.83

C4

5.43

5.62

42.00

7.40

24.30

5.11

43.11

5.70

56.90 63.66

C5

4.27

3.78

35.92

4.74

19.79

3.39

36.33

5.02

ITV3

2.94

2.56

35.34

0.73

4.41

2.30

35.81

3.48

64.19

ITV2

2.48

1.89

31.01

4.23

30.42

2.10

38.77

2.80

61.23

ITV4

2.03

2.25

45.08

1.83

16.09

2.52

57.11

1.60

42.90

E4

1.93

1.97

41.36

5.66

52.18

1.88

44.47

1.98

55.54

Film 4

1.45

1.19

33.38

1.41

17.42

1.71

54.23

1.22

45.74

BBC3

1.32

1.25

38.47

2.83

38.10

1.57

54.38

1.11

45.60

Dave

1.24

1.19

38.66

2.09

29.94

1.71

63.11

0.85

36.89

More 4

1.22

1.23

40.71

1.07

15.57

1.15

43.17

1.28

56.80

5 USA

1.01

0.77

30.88

0.61

10.67

1.02

45.90

1.01

54.04

BBC4

0.98

1.31

54.34

0.36

6.52

1.16

53.89

0.84

46.09

Sky1

0.83

0.87

42.36

1.75

37.52

0.92

50.35

0.76

49.74

Drama

0.76

0.73

38.89

0.23

5.41

0.69

41.71

0.82

58.27

Yesterday

0.70

0.59

34.03

0.29

7.42

0.90

58.56

0.54

41.44

5*

0.52

0.46

35.84

0.65

22.48

0.51

45.34

0.52

54.66

25%

ITV’s screening of Zig Zag’s US reality show I Wanna Marry ‘Harry’ scored well with 16-24s, who made up 25% of viewers versus a 16% slot average (Wednesday, 9pm).

Share covers all hours. Figures include HD and +1 where applicable 1: Each channel’s share of total demographic. 2: Demographic as a percentage of the channel’s total viewers.

Digital focus

Hollyoaks dazzles for E4

BY Stephen Price

In 2015, Hollyoaks will be 20 years old; but despite recent upstarts like the big bang theorists, it remains a perky stalwart of E4’s schedule.

Elsewhere there were yet more murders, a wild west finale, plus motorbikes and tennis.

With E4’s The Big Bang Theory continuing to top out on 1.6 million/8%, older incumbent Hollyoaks came an impressive second for the channel on 1.1 million/6% on Monday at 7pm.

In ITV3’s Midsomer Murders splurge last week, Sunday’s 8pm episode (1.3 million/6%) did best out of the weekend’s nine episodes.

The best of ITV4’s sport offering was The French Open Tennis Final from 5.40pm on Sunday, which achieved 950,000/6%. The best of the TT 2014 was Friday at 9pm, drawing 700,000/3%.

The final episode of BBC4’s How The Wild West Was Won With Ray Mears on Thursday at 9pm achieved its best live rating, with 930,000/5%.

40 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

Source: BARB

digital homes

Top 30 multichannel programmes Title

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 16 18 19 19 21 21 21 24 24 24 27 28 28 30

The Big Bang Theory Midsomer Murders Hollyoaks Lewis How I Met Your Mother Hollyoaks Game Of Thrones French Open Tennis Live How The Wild West Was Won...

Hollyoaks Hollyoaks Midsomer Murders Canadian F1 Grand Prix Midsomer Murders Midsomer Murders Only Connect Wallander Made In Chelsea Midsomer Murders The Big Bang Theory TT 2014 The Big Bang Theory Family Guy Norman Wisdom: His Story Lewis TT 2014 Britain’s Got More Talent Dumb And Dumber TT 2014 Hollyoaks

Figures include HD and +1 where applicable

Day

Thu Sun Mon Wed Thu Wed Mon Sun Thu Tue Thu Tue Sun Sat Sun Mon Sat Mon Sat Wed Fri Mon Fri Sun Fri Tue Sat Tue Mon Fri

Start

20.00 20.00 19.00 20.00 20.30 19.00 21.00 17.40 21.00 19.00 19.00 20.00 18.00 16.55 18.00 20.30 21.00 22.00 21.00 18.30 21.00 18.30 23.25 21.00 20.00 21.00 21.30 20.00 21.00 19.00

Viewers (millions)

1.61 1.28 1.10 1.02 0.99 0.98 0.96 0.95 0.93 0.86 0.85 0.83 0.82 0.79 0.74 0.73 0.73 0.72 0.71 0.71 0.68 0.68 0.68 0.64 0.64 0.64 0.63 0.62 0.62 0.61

Share (%)

Channel

8.18 5.78 5.72 4.48 4.68 4.95 4.19 6.32 4.46 4.64 4.93 3.90 4.15 5.75 4.20 3.16 3.37 4.50 3.49 4.08 3.49 4.00 7.23 2.89 3.32 2.91 3.04 2.96 2.69 3.75

E4 ITV3 E4 ITV3 E4 E4 Sky Atlantic ITV4 BBC 4 E4 E4 ITV3 Sky Sports F1 ITV3 ITV3 BBC 4 BBC 4 E4 ITV3 E4 ITV4 E4 BBC 3 BBC 4 ITV3 ITV4 ITV2 ITV2 ITV4 E4

Channels

Share (%)

BBC1 ITV BBC2 C4 C5 Total multichannel ITV3 ITV2 ITV4 E4 Film 4 BBC 3 CBeebies Dave More 4 5 USA BBC4 BBC News

20.18 17.73 5.56 5.43 4.27 46.84 2.94 2.48 2.03 1.93 1.45 1.32 1.26 1.24 1.22 1.01 0.98 0.95

Figures include HD and +1 where applicable

283k BBC4’s Dublin-based drama Amber debuted below the 373,000 slot average (Tuesday, 10pm)

www.broadcastnow.co.uk

All BARB ratings supplied by: Attentional

Non-PSB top 50 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50

Title

Day

Start

Viewers (all homes)

Share %

Game Of Thrones Live Canadian F1 Grand Prix 24: Live Another Day NCIS Live ODI Cricket New Tricks Modern Family Canadian F1 GP Qualifying Live International Rugby Union The Simpsons Hawaii Five-0 Bones Criminal Minds Room 101 Mock The Week Darts Gold The Simpsons The Simpsons The Simpsons Live ODI Cricket The Simpsons The Simpsons The Simpsons The Simpsons The Simpsons Lizard Lick Towing Ex On The Beach Penny Dreadful Salvage Hunters Game, Set And Mats The Simpsons Grimm NCIS: LA The Simpsons Lizard Lick Towing Open All Hours The Simpsons QI XL Storage Hunters The Simpsons Storage Hunters Mock The Week The Simpsons Jonathan Creek Storage Hunters The Simpsons The Simpsons QI XL Live French Open: Andy Murray Vs..

Storage Hunters

Mon Sun Wed Fri Tue Thu Mon Sat Sat Tue Sun Wed Mon Wed Fri Sun Mon Fri Wed Tue Thu Tue Fri Mon Mon Wed Tue Tue Wed Sun Tue Wed Sun Thu Wed Fri Fri Thu Sat Sun Sat Fri Thu Mon Sat Mon Wed Fri Wed Sun

21.00 18.00 21.00 21.00 19.30 21.00 20.30 17.00 8.00 19.00 21.00 21.00 21.00 22.00 22.00 22.00 19.30 18.30 19.30 13.30 19.30 18.30 19.00 20.00 19.00 20.30 22.00 21.00 21.00 17.00 19.30 21.00 22.00 19.00 20.00 21.00 19.30 21.00 10.30 18.30 15.30 22.40 18.30 21.00 15.00 18.30 20.00 21.00 17.15 11.30

962,300 817,500 536,600 458,000 455,300 453,300 446,800 434,500 412,000 404,700 392,200 392,000 386,200 370,700 356,200 350,000 341,800 332,300 332,000 325,300 323,200 323,000 320,400 317,400 313,400 311,900 311,100 308,300 306,700 305,900 303,100 295,800 291,800 290,700 289,300 288,200 287,000 285,500 285,400 277,600 276,200 272,400 268,000 261,800 259,200 258,500 257,000 256,900 253,700 251,400

4.19 4.15 2.32 2.34 2.21 2.24 1.94 2.81 6.34 2.18 1.76 1.69 1.68 2.16 2.01 1.85 1.63 2.34 1.74 3.26 1.75 1.97 1.98 1.50 1.64 1.38 1.98 1.40 1.32 2.38 1.46 1.28 1.82 1.69 1.33 1.48 1.62 1.37 3.92 1.66 2.79 1.98 1.70 1.18 2.75 1.52 1.18 1.31 1.39 4.03

Figures include HD and +1 where applicable

Penny Dreadful www.broadcastnow.co.uk

New Tricks

Broadcaster/ Producer* Sky Atlantic Sky Sports F1 Sky 1 Fox Sky Sports 2 Drama/Wall To Wall Sky 1 Sky Sports F1 Sky Sports 1 Sky 1 Sky 1 Sky Living Sky Living Dave/Hat Trick Productions Dave/Angst Productions Sky Sports 1 Sky 1 Sky 1 Sky 1 Sky Sports 2 Sky 1 Sky 1 Sky 1 Sky 1 Sky 1 Dave MTV/Whizz Kid Sky Atlantic/Neal Street Quest Eurosport Sky 1 Watch Sky 1 Sky 1 Dave Yesterday Sky 1 Dave/Talkback Dave/T Group Sky 1 Dave/T Group Dave/Angst Productions Sky 1 Drama Dave/T Group Sky 1 Sky 1 Dave/Talkback Eurosport 2 Dave/T Group

86k

Sky Atlantic’s comedy drama Mr Sloane dipped to a series low for episode three

F1 races ahead for Sky Sports

BY Stephen PRice

The moral of the tale is never, ever fight someone called The Mountain That Rides. He’s bound to be big and he’s likely to be a cad. And as Thrones fans found out last week, he doesn’t die easily. Still, if you’ve not seen it yet, it might be worth eating a melon today; you won’t want to afterwards.

The eighth episode of series four of Game Of Thrones on Sky Atlantic at 9pm on Monday followed the drama’s steady pattern with 962,000/ 4%, fractionally behind last week’s live rating of 988,000/ 5%. Part three of the channel’s other gothic thriller, Penny Dreadful, reached 308,000/1% on Tuesday at 9pm, slightly up on last week’s 274,000/1% but behind the opener’s 353,000/2% in live ratings.

The best sport performance was Sky Sports F1’s coverage of the Canadian Grand Prix, which averaged 818,000/4% from 6pm on Sunday, 20 minutes before BBC1’s coverage began.

UKTV’s top performer was Thursday’s New Tricks episode on Drama with 453,000/2%.

At its halfway point, Sky 1’s 12-part 24: Live Another Day achieved 537,000/2% on Wednesday at 9pm. The best live episode remains the 14 May episode at 9pm with 692,000/3%.

NCIS was Fox’s best performer this week with 458,000/2% on Friday at 9pm.

13 June 2014 | Broadcast | 41

Ratings Mon 26 May – Sun 1 June

All BARB ratings supplied by: Attentional

Consolidated Ratings

Happy ending for BBC’s Valley

BY Stephen Price

Ignoring for a moment the thing that’s about to land from Brazil, the week of ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent live knockouts is like a bugle heralding summer. ‘One more big Saturday to go,’ it toots, ‘and then you are free; you can go outside and everything.’ However, with sport falling over itself for our attention, this summer will be different (I, for one, am very excited about August’s European Aquatics Championships in Berlin). In other news, Channel 4’s Fargo is doing quite nicely while Happy Valley ended on a high.

BBC1: Happy Valley The penultimate episode of BBC1’s drama Happy Valley on 27 May was the most recorded of the series. Its live rating of 5.3 million/

Source: BARB

22%, hit by Britain’s Got Talent, was the lowest of the run, but after 1.8 million recorded and watched, it consolidated to 7.1 million/25%.

However, the consolidated figure for the finale on 3 June has now snuck out – it ended on a series high of 7.8 million/30% after 1.6 million recorded and watched.

Overall, the six-part series averaged a very happy 7.2 million/28%.

ITV: Britain’s Got Talent Britain’s Got Talent’s week-long live knockouts ended on ITV on Saturday 31 May (with one day off on Friday for England’s friendly against Peru, which netted 6.5 million/29%). Over the week, BGT averaged 8.8 million/39%. The best and most recorded was Bank Holiday Monday’s 10.9 million/ 43% after 915,000 watched via PVR. The main shows averaged 9.6 million/40% (last year: 10.2 million/42%); the results shows averaged 7.9 million/31% (last year: 8.8 million/33%). BGT remains a whopper, but declines in any

whopper can have a disproportionate effect on the channel overall.

Channel 4: Fargo The seventh episode (of 10) of Channel 4’s Fargo on Sunday 1 June consolidated to 1.9 million /8% after 510,000 recorded and watched. So far, the series is averaging 2.1 million/8%, of whom 261,000/13% are lucrative 16-34 males. The Monday midnight repeat is averaging 591,000, while 4seven’s Saturday repeats are averaging 123,000.

History Channel: Vikings The third episode of The History Channel’s Vikings, on Tuesday 27 May at 10pm, achieved just 107,000/0.7% in live ratings.

However, after 445,000 watched via PVR, it ended on 552,000/3%, ahead of last week’s 469,000/ 2.5%. The highest of the three remains the launch episode’s 684,000/4%. And all of these are better than History’s previous high: Ice Road Truckers’ 389,000/2% back in 2008.

Top 30 Consolidated Ratings: ranked by gain

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 10 11 12 13 14 14 16 17 17 19 20 21 22 23 24 24 26 26 28 29 29

10m

ITV’s week of 9pm Coronation Streets peaked on Thursday, which added 850,000 via PVR.

UP The Big Bang Theory hit 2.5m DOWN From There To Here down by 2.2m

Sign up to receive our ratings newsletter at broadcastnow.co.uk

Title

Day

Start

Viewers (m) (all homes)

Share %

Gain (m)

Gain %

Happy Valley EastEnders Coronation Street EastEnders From There To Here Britain’s Got Talent Britain’s Got Talent Coronation Street Britain’s Got Talent Result EastEnders Casualty Coronation Street Britain’s Got Talent Britain’s Got Talent The Island With Bear Grylls The Big Bang Theory Have I Got News For You Coronation Street Elementary The Mentalist Coronation Street Britain’s Got Talent Quirke Modern Family Bones Britain’s Got Talent Result Made In Chelsea 24: Live Another Day EastEnders Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Tue Tue Tue Mon Thu Mon Sat Thu Sat Thu Sat Mon Thu Tue Mon Thu Fri Sun Tue Tue Wed Wed Sun Mon Wed Mon Mon Wed Fri Fri

21.00 19.30 21.00 19.30 21.00 19.30 19.00 21.00 21.30 19.30 20.40 21.00 19.30 19.30 21.00 20.00 21.00 20.00 21.00 21.00 21.00 19.30 21.00 20.30 21.00 21.35 22.00 21.00 01.15 20.00

7.10 6.53 10.04 6.21 3.35 10.94 8.96 10.38 7.09 6.30 5.08 10.03 9.53 9.31 2.76 2.49 4.58 8.41 0.99 1.80 10.17 9.41 4.29 0.97 0.87 8.87 1.34 1.17 0.95 1.77

24.63 27.41 32.86 24.91 12.87 42.47 43.44 37.88 30.76 27.31 23.78 36.47 39.55 37.55 10.33 10.27 18.70 31.53 3.41 6.14 36.22 38.69 18.42 3.62 3.23 34.09 7.10 4.34 23.39 7.64

1.76 1.04 1.00 0.96 0.95 0.91 0.89 0.85 0.85 0.84 0.80 0.77 0.73 0.70 0.70 0.69 0.67 0.67 0.66 0.65 0.62 0.61 0.60 0.58 0.58 0.57 0.57 0.54 0.53 0.53

32.90 19.00 11.10 18.30 39.40 9.10 11.10 8.90 13.60 15.40 18.80 8.40 8.30 8.20 33.70 38.30 17.20 8.70 200.50 56.80 6.50 6.90 16.30 149.20 203.00 6.90 73.30 85.30 126.20 42.40

Broadcaster BBC1 BBC1 ITV BBC1 BBC1 ITV ITV ITV ITV BBC1 BBC1 ITV ITV ITV C4 E4 BBC1 ITV Sky Living C5 ITV ITV BBC1 Sky 1 Sky Living ITV E4 Sky 1 BBC1 C4

Figures include HD and +1 where applicable

42 | Broadcast | 13 June 2014

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ALL A TWITTER

director Heather Croall revealed Greer to be on punchy form earlier in the day with the revelation of the academic’s disinclination to wear a delegate lanyard: “Do I have to?” she complained. “No decent pot-smoking nymphomaniac would wear that.”

Early morning catch up of #GameOfThrones is doing nothing for my anxiety levels. @PhelpsieSarah (Sarah Phelps) Writer, The Crimson Field

Greer refuses to be labelled BBC arts commissioner Greg Sanderson had the unenviable task of moderating two of the feistiest panellists at Sheffield DocFest in the shape of Howard Jacobson and Germaine Greer, who made waves when she declared “feminism hasn’t happened yet”. Festival

A DocFest session about the challenges of making Channel 4’s The Secret Life Of Freshers was a buzzing affair – literally. Raw TV founder Dimitri Doganis was explaining how the production team sifted through 250,000 texts, calls, tweets and status updates for the show at exactly the moment his own mobile went off. Perhaps it was moderator Jez Wilkins, secretly apologising for some of his more groan-inducing puns…

@RolandMooreTV (Roland Moore) Writer, Rastamouse

I love the mixture of pity and patronising waffle heaped upon anyone over 50 on BGT. @tobydavies (Toby Davies) Writer, Crackanory

I’ve just watched #Happy Valley and #ExOnTheBeach.

Basically it’s not a good night for men on television. @furquan (Furquan Akhtar) Script editor, Hollyoaks

Tom Harrad Development researcher, Icon Films

DocFest is all a buzz Greer: in punchy form at DocFest

Waiting for BBC2 to commission Game Of Scones – an edgy cake-making show full of extreme violence, nudity and Viennese whirls.

AND FINALLY ...

Does In The Flesh creator Dominic Mitchell feel any frustration with French drama The Returned for covering similar themes? Not a bit of it, judging by his cheeky tribute to the series. In episode one of In The Flesh’s second series, hero Kieren is mulling emigrating to Paris and circles a hotel in a Rough Guide book. Its name? Hotel Gobert, in tribute to The Returned creator Fabrice Gobert.

Tell us one of your most hilarious faux pas I was arrested while breaking into Berlin Zoo. It’s next door to the Central Police Station.

What is your biggest regret in life?

Not making it to the monkey enclosure.

Which TV or radio programme would you resuscitate?

The Adam And Joe Show. Pop culture needs taking down a peg or two, preferably using stuffed animals, fairy lights and cardboard.

Who would you least like to share a taxi with?

Any Top Gear presenter.

Who is your pin-up?

Jonathan Meades (below).

What would you do with a million quid?

Pay Alan Bennett and David Hockney to do impersonations of each other.

What keeps you awake at night?

Pitbull’s continued success.

Who would you put in the Celebrity Big Brother house?

Paddy McGuiness with no cameras. I’d ‘lose’ the key.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given?

Read what you have written OUT LOUD. Then you’ll realise how insane it sounds.

F Frroomm ccoommmmi issssi ioonn t too t trraannssmmi issssi ioonn F Frroomm ccoommmmi issssi ioonn t too t trraannssmmi issssi ioonn

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